Partial Least Square Discriminant Analysis Discovered a Dietary Pattern Inversely Associated with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Risk

PLoS One. 2016 Jun 1;11(6):e0155892. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0155892. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Evidence on the association between dietary component, dietary pattern and nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is scarce. A major challenge is the high degree of correlation among dietary constituents. We aimed to identify dietary pattern associated with NPC and to illustrate the dose-response relationship between the identified dietary pattern scores and the risk of NPC. Taking advantage of a matched NPC case-control study, data from a total of 319 incident cases and 319 matched controls were analyzed. Dietary pattern was derived employing partial least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) performed on energy-adjusted food frequencies derived from a 66-item food-frequency questionnaire. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated with multiple conditional logistic regression models, linking pattern scores and NPC risk. A high score of the PLS-DA derived pattern was characterized by high intakes of fruits, milk, fresh fish, vegetables, tea, and eggs ordered by loading values. We observed that one unit increase in the scores was associated with a significantly lower risk of NPC (ORadj = 0.73, 95% CI = 0.60-0.88) after controlling for potential confounders. Similar results were observed among Epstein-Barr virus seropositive subjects. An NPC protective diet is indicated with more phytonutrient-rich plant foods (fruits, vegetables), milk, other protein-rich foods (in particular fresh fish and eggs), and tea. This information may be used to design potential dietary regimen for NPC prevention.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Carcinoma / pathology*
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Diet*
  • Discriminant Analysis
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Least-Squares Analysis
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma
  • Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Risk Factors

Grants and funding

This study was supported from the intramural funds from the National Institutes of Health, USA and from Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.