Table 1_Causal association of peripheral immune cell counts with risk of prostate cancer: insights from bidirectional Mendelian randomization.xlsx

ObjectivesThis study aimed to examine the causal relationships between peripheral immune cell counts and prostate cancer, adhering to Mendelian Randomization reporting guidelines for transparency and reproducibility.
MethodsIn this study, bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis, which includes MR-Egger, weighted median, weighted mode, and inverse variance weighted (IVW) approaches, was utilized to evaluate the bidirectional causal relationship between peripheral immune cell counts and the risk of PCa.
ResultsThe primary analysis using the IVW method suggests a potential causal association between basophil counts and the risk of prostate cancer (PCa), with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.111 and a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.011-1.222 (P = 0.028). Conversely, non-causal associations have been observed between other peripheral immune cell types, such as white blood cells, neutrophils, lymphocytes, eosinophils, or monocytes, and the incidence of PCa (P values > 0.05). Furthermore, although reverse analysis indicated a causal link between PCa and the counts of leukocytes and neutrophils (OR = 1.013; 95% CI = 1.002–1.225; P = 0.018 and OR = 1.013; 95% CI = 1.002–1.025; P = 0.019), no causal association was detected between PCa and basophil count (P value > 0.050).
ConclusionThis study suggests a potential bidirectional link between peripheral immune cells and prostate cancer, but inconsistencies in Mendelian Randomization methods mean these findings are preliminary and require further investigation.

研究目的
本研究旨在探究外周免疫细胞计数与前列腺癌之间的因果关联，遵循孟德尔随机化（Mendelian Randomization, MR）报告指南以保障研究的透明度与可重复性。

研究方法
本研究采用双向孟德尔随机化分析，涵盖MR-Egger法、加权中位数法、加权众数法及逆方差加权（inverse variance weighted, IVW）法，用以评估外周免疫细胞计数与前列腺癌发病风险间的双向因果关系。

研究结果
采用逆方差加权（IVW）法的主分析显示，嗜碱性粒细胞计数与前列腺癌（Prostate Cancer, PCa）发病风险存在潜在因果关联，其比值比（odds ratio, OR）为1.111，95%置信区间（confidence interval, CI）为1.011~1.222（P=0.028）。反之，其余外周免疫细胞类型，如白细胞、中性粒细胞、淋巴细胞、嗜酸性粒细胞与单核细胞，均未显示与前列腺癌发病风险存在因果关联（P>0.05）。此外，尽管反向分析提示前列腺癌与白细胞、中性粒细胞计数间存在因果关联（OR=1.013，95%CI=1.002~1.225，P=0.018；OR=1.013，95%CI=1.002~1.025，P=0.019），但未检测到前列腺癌与嗜碱性粒细胞计数间存在因果关联（P>0.050）。

研究结论
本研究提示外周免疫细胞与前列腺癌间存在潜在双向关联，但不同孟德尔随机化分析方法的结果存在不一致性，表明上述发现尚属初步，需进一步开展研究验证。