The NSW Cancer, Lifestyle and Evaluation of Risk (CLEAR) Study will provide the most comprehensive information to date on the lifestyle and genetic factors that influence cancer risk in the NSW population.

Participants in the study will complete an extensive lifestyle questionnaire and are requested to contribute a blood sample for storage in a biological repository. The questionnaire information will provide researches with knowledge of the environmental conditions of study participants. This along with the information gained from the blood samples will provide a resource to test current and future hypotheses on gene-environment interactions on the risk of cancer.

This study aims to see which gene-environment interactions are important, and to see if they differ amongst various groups in our community. Effects of various factors, including physical activity, alcohol consumption, smoking, migration, ethnicity, reproductive history, occupation, screening behaviour and certain dietary patterns would be evaluated.

The recruitment goal over the first five years of the study is 10,000 participants; 5000 people recently diagnosed with cancer and 5000 partners (where applicable). The partners of people with cancer will form an important reference group from which the study investigators will be able to assess the risk factors for various types of cancer.

With 10,000 participants on study, results for cancers of the colon and rectum, prostate, breast and lung, melanoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma will be available. When participation reaches 25,000, enough information will be available to assess the effects of the various genetic and lifestyle factors on the risk of developing liver, thyroid, ovarian and pancreatic cancers.

Ultimately, the results of the CLEAR Study will:

• Help inform public health decisions about how best to prevent cancer
• Provide a better understanding of the multi-factorial causes of cancer in NSW and how these differ in different cultural groups
• Support better decision-making and prediction of outcomes

If you are interested in participating in the CLEAR study, please click here.