Boston, MA - Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) will present findings from four research abstracts at the 10th Annual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research, held from October 22 through October 25, 2011, in Boston, Massachusetts.
Coffee Consumption Associated With Decreased Risk for Basal Cell Carcinoma
Fengju Song, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Dermatology at BWH
In a new study, researchers at BWH uncovered an association between caffeine consumption and a decreased risk of a certain type of skin cancer.
The prospective study examined the risks of basal cell carcinoma (BCC), squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and melanoma in connection with coffee consumption and found a decreased risk for BCC only.
The researchers found that women who consumed more than three cups per day had a 20 percent reduction in risk of basal cell carcinoma, and men who consumed more than three cups per day had a nine percent risk reduction compared with people who consumed less than one cup per month.
They were surprised by the inverse connection in BCC cases only. Animal studies have suggested an association between caffeine intake and skin cancer risk, but epidemiologic studies have not conclusively shown the same results.
Increased Tanning Bed Use Increases Risk for Deadly Skin Cancers
Mingfeng Zhang, MD, research fellow in the Department of Dermatology at BWH
Researchers at BWH have confirmed an association between tanning bed use and an increased risk for three common skin cancers — basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma.
The researchers tracked tanning bed use for women in the Nurses’ Health Study II, looking at use during high school and college and when women were aged between 25 and 35 years old. They also tracked the overall average usage during both periods in relation to basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma.
Results showed that tanning bed use increased skin cancer risk with a dose–response effect. More tanning bed exposures lead to higher risks. Compared with nonusers, the risk for basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma increased by 15 percent for every four visits made to tanning booth per year; the risk for melanoma increased by 11 percent.
Researcher say these results have a public health impact on skin cancer prevention for all three types of skin cancer and can be used to warn the public against future use of tanning beds and to promote restrictions on the indoor tanning industry by policy makers.
Analgesic Use Associated With Significantly Increased Risk for Renal Cell Carcinoma
Eunyoung Cho, ScD, associate epidemiologist at BWH
Use of acetaminophen and nonaspirin NSAIDs was associated with a significantly increased risk for developing renal cell carcinoma, according to data presented by researchers at BWH.
The researchers conducted a preliminary meta-analysis of 18 studies from six countries to examine analgesics use and its relation to the risk for renal cell carcinoma (RCC). They found 12 studies examining risk for acetaminophen, 12 for aspirin and five for NSAIDs.
Results demonstrated that regular or any use of acetaminophen yielded a pooled relative risk of 1.33 and use of non-aspirin NSAIDs had a pooled relative risk of 1.26. No significant increased risk for RCC was found with the use of aspirin (pooled relative risk of 1.14).
The meta-analysis revealed similar trends with high-dose analgesic intake. Researchers found no significant difference in associations based on study design, type of controls in case-control studies, study outcome or gender.
