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Coffee consumption linked to lower risk for basal cell carcinoma
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Coffee consumption was associated with reduced risk for basal cell carcinoma of 20% in women and 9% in men, results from a prospective study demonstrate. According to researchers, caffeine likely is the cause, as decaffeinated coffee consumption was not associated with a lower risk for the disease.
Although previous animal studies have suggested an association between caffeine and skin cancer risk, the current in-man study shows an inverse relationship between caffeine consumption and basal cell carcinoma risk.
“Given the nearly 1 million new cases of basal cell carcinoma diagnosed each year in the United States, daily dietary factors with even small protective effects may have great public health impact,” Fengju Song, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the department of dermatology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, said in a press release. “Our study indicates that coffee consumption may be an important option to help prevent basal cell carcinoma.”
Song and colleagues examined the association between coffee consumption and the risk for basal cell carcinoma, melanoma and squamous cell carcinoma using data from the Nurses’ Health Study (n=72,921) and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (n=39,976). Patients in the Nurses’ Health Study were followed from June 1984 to June 2008; those in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study were followed from June 1986 to June 2008. Among the two cohorts, there were 25,480 incident skin cancer cases: 22,786 basal cell carcinoma cases, 1,953 squamous cell carcinoma cases and 741melanoma cases.
Researchers found a significant dose-response relationship among both men and women (P=.005 and P<.0001).
Women who consumed more than three cups of coffee per day had a 20% (95% CI, 0.78-0.85) reduction in the risk for basal cell carcinoma compared with those who consumed less than 1 cup per month. Men who consumed more than three cups of coffee per day had a 9% (95% CI, 0.81-1.02) reduction in the risk for basal cell carcinoma compared with those who consumed less than 1 cup per month.
Additionally, the amount of caffeine consumed was inversely associated with the risk for basal cell carcinoma. The risk was lowest for the highest quintile in both women (RR=0.82; 95% CI, 0.78-0.87) and men (RR=0.87; 95% CI, 0.81-0.94).
Coffee consumption was not associated with a reduced risk for melanoma or squamous cell carcinoma.
According to Song, additional studies addressing the association between coffee consumption and basal cell carcinoma and the mechanism of action are warranted.
For more information:
- Song F. Abstract # B106.