Background: Previous researches showed that the level of distress experienced by family members especially first-degree relatives is higher than the one experienced by the patient himself. Selenium has been found to be associated with a reduced risk of all cancers at doses> 55 μg / day, The greatest positive anticancer mechanism of selenium may be contributed by the antioxidant function of GPxs and Selenoprotein P.
Aim of the work: The aim of this work is to compare serum levels of selenium in medical students who are first degree relatives of cancer patients to those with no family history of cancer.
Patients and Methods: This study is part of the Nutritional Assessment of Medical Students of Ain Shams University (NAMES-ASU) Project. Of the 1,200 medical students who came forward, 30 students were selected as the subject group (P) as they had a positive family history of cancer in first-degree relatives. The other 26 students were randomly selected from the rest of the sample with no family history of cancer to represent the control group (C). Selenium levels were measured from serum samples using Atomic Absorption Spectometry, stress was evaluated by a stress questionnaire and dietary Se intake was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire.
Results: The present study showed that the subject group had significantly higher stress levels than the control group (p = 0.003) with means of 13.92 and 18.27 for (C) group and (P) group respectively. Regarding stress and Se intake in relation to serum Se levels, they were statistically significant (p-Value 0.000 for both variables) However the Se dietary intake had more effect on serum Se levels than stress. The study also showed that age had an inverse relation to serum Se levels among both groups (p-Value was 0.021).
Conclusion: The Dietary Intake of Se, Stress and Age are significantly associated with serum Se levels. There is a negative correlation between Stress and Serum Selenium Levels.