The Early Life Exposures Study
Early life factors may influence health in adulthood. As part of their participation in the Sister Study, women were asked to provide detailed information about childhood experiences and activities, their mothers’ pregnancies with them, and family history of diseases. However, we understand it may not be easy to remember or accurately report this information. It is important for the Sister Study to learn how well participants were able to answer these questions. Therefore, we are asking some participants’ mothers the same questions to determine how well mothers and daughters agree.
The Early Life Exposures Study, directed by post-doctoral fellow Dr. Aimee D’Aloisio, along with Drs Sandler, DeRoo, and Weinberg, will help us determine the quality of the information we have on daughters’ early life and family history. Knowing how well participants report information on early life factors will allow more accurate interpretation and reporting of study findings on how these factors influence later health conditions. We are inviting up to 2,200 participants who were under age 60 at the time of full enrollment in the Sister Study and their mothers to participate in this study.
The daughters in the Sister Study are our only link to their mothers. We will send a letter to the selected Sister Study participants asking them to send study information and a brief questionnaire to their mothers. The questionnaire will cover the mother’s pregnancy with the Sister Study participant as well as other early life experiences and family history of cancer and other health conditions. In addition, daughters will be asked a few questions about their prior experience completing the Family History Questionnaire and to provide copies of birth documents that include their birth weight. We look forward to what we will learn about the quality of information we have on participants’ early life and family history for studying how these factors influence health later in life. For more information about the Early Life Exposures Study, you can call the Sister Study helpdesk, toll-free, at 1-877-4SISTER.
