The Multiethnic Cohort (MEC) Study

The MEC was established to include all socioeconomic strata within each ethnic group. The primary sampling frame for the study was the driver license files in Hawaii and California, which included name, sex, and age of residents of all socioeconomic strata. Voter registration files in Hawaii and Medicare files in California were additional sources used to help identify ethnic-specific populations between the ages of 45-75 years in the state of Hawaii and Los Angeles County. ]]>
In 1993-1996, the Multiethnic Cohort (MEC) Study was established by Dr. Laurence Kolonel at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center and Dr. Brian Henderson at the University of Southern California Norris Cancer Center. Over 215,000 men and women, aged 45 to 75 years, from five main ethnic/racial groups, who were residents of the State of Hawaii and Los Angeles in 1993-1996, enrolled in the study by completing a comprehensive 26-page questionnaire. The questionnaire asked primarily about diet, vitamin supplements, medications, occupations, physical activity and family history of cancer. Follow-up questionnaires were sent every five years to update this information. Biological specimens (mainly a blood and urine sample) were collected from more than 70,000 MEC members in 2001-2005. These specimens, stored in special low temperature freezers, enable us to measure components in blood and urine that may predict cancer. ]]>