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Acrylamide not associated with lung cancer
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Dutch researchers have found that dietary acrylamide, a possible carcinogen commonly found in starchy foods, was not associated with an increased risk for lung cancer in men and a high intake appeared to lower the risk for lung cancer in women.
A self-administered survey was given to 58,279 men and 62,573 women aged 55 to 69 in the Netherlands Cohort Study on Diet and Cancer. Study participants were asked questions about their diet and other risk factors for cancer such as smoking, alcohol intake and physical activity.
There were 2,238 cases of lung cancer confirmed after 13.3 years of follow-up.
For men, the multivariable-adjusted HR was 1.03 for a 10-mcg per day increment of acrylamide intake (95% CI, 0.96-1.11.). The researchers added that acrylamide was not associated with any histological subtype of cancer.
Women had a decreased risk for lung cancer as their acrylamide intake increased. The HR per 10-mcg per day increment of acrylamide intake was 0.82 (95% CI, 0.69-0.96).
In an accompanying editorial, Lorelei A. Mucci, ScD, and Hans-Olov Adami, MD, PhD, wrote that more research was needed before it could be conclusively shown that acrylamide intake decreases the risk for lung cancer in women.
“In our view, speculation about the potential mechanisms of the protective effect of acrylamide on lung cancer among women should await confirmation in additional studies,” they wrote. “Perhaps the safer conclusion we can make from the Netherlands study is that the findings do not support a positive association between acrylamide intake from diet and lung cancer.”
Hogervorst JGF. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2009:101:651-662.