Consortium on Health and Ageing: Network of Cohorts in Europe and the United States (CHANCES)

Title of project or programme

Principal Investigators of project/programme grant

Title	Forname	Surname	Institution	Country
Professor	Paolo	Boffetta	HELLENIC HEALTH FOUNDATION	GREECE

Address of institution of lead PI

Institution	HELLENIC HEALTH FOUNDATION
Street Address
City
Postcode

Country

Greece

Source of funding information

European Commission

Total sum awarded (Euro)

11932398

Start date of award

01-02-2010

Total duration of award in months

The project/programme is most relevant to

Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias

Keywords

Research abstract in English

The CHANCES project aims at combining and integrating on-going cohort studies in order to produce evidence on ageing-related health characteristics and determinants in Europe, and their socio-economic implications. Fourteen cohorts participate in the project, covering populations from 18 EU Member States, four associate countries, and three additional countries. The combination of these different studies would lead to an integrated approach to the study of health in the elderly. The project is planned to address five main types of health related characteristics:

1. Incidence of chronic conditions, disabilities and mortality;
2. Prevalence of chronic conditions and disabilities;
3. Health-related determinants of chronic conditions and disabilities;
4. Ageing-related characteristics as determinants of chronic condition, disabilities and mortality;
5. Social and economic implications of chronic conditions, disabilities and mortality in the elderly.

Analyses are to be conducted in subjects aged 50-59, 60-69 and 70+ years. Health-related determinants comprise (1) socio-economic factors (e.g., education, income), (2) environmental factors (e.g., occupational exposures), (3) lifestyle factors (e.g., tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking), and (4) nutritional factors (e.g., BMI, dietary patterns), in addition to biomarkers and genetic factors. Four major groups of chronic conditions and disabilities are planned to be studied:

1. Cancer
2. Diabetes and cardiovascular diseases
3. Fractures and osteoporosis
4. Cognitive dysfunction and Alzheimer disease

Information on other conditions and disabilities (e.g., eye diseases, chronic respiratory conditions) will be also collected if available. Mortality is to be assessed in terms of age-specific rates a well as DALYs. A health module will be developed, to be applied to other population surveys. Additionally, the study will generate a unique resource for additional studies on health and its determinants in the elderly. Provisions will be made to allow for this work to be extended.

Lay summary