Smoking, Alcohol, Caffeine and Ovarian Cancer Risk

Last week, came out interesting new findings on ovarian cancer.

New developments revealed that cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption do not have an effect on ovarian cancer risk.

However, caffeine intake may lower the risk of developing ovarian cancer, particularly in women not using hormones.

Such were the findings published in the March 1, 2008 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

There was no association between current or past smoking and ovarian cancer risk, however smoking status, duration, and pack-years were significantly associated with risk of mucinous tumors, a rare form of ovarian cancer. The authors also found no association between alcohol consumption and ovarian cancer risk.

However they observed an inverse trend of risk with total caffeine and caffeinated coffee intake, but no association with decaffeinated coffee. The potential reduction in risk with higher caffeine intake appeared to be strongest for women who had never used oral contraceptives or postmenopausal hormones.

The authors concluded that “reducing alcohol intake and cessation of smoking is not likely to have a substantial impact on risk of ovarian cancer.”

They add that “the possibility that caffeine may reduce ovarian cancer risk, particularly for women who have not previously used exogenous hormones, is intriguing and warrants further study, including an evaluation of possible biological mechanisms.”

The above study was conducted by Dr. Shelley S. Tworoger of Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health and colleagues.

Find more details from Science Daily.