BMJ  2005;330:111 (15 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7483.111-a

News

Evidence grows that eating red meat increases cancer risk

New York

High consumption of red and processed meat is associated with an increased risk of colon cancer, a new study has confirmed.

Eating large quantities of red meat seems to increase the risk of rectal cancer by 40% Credit: UNP/REX

Meat consumption has previously been associated with colorectal cancer in earlier studies, but the strength of the association and types of meat involved have not been consistent ( JAMA, 2005;293: 172-82[Abstract/Free Full Text]).

Dr Ann Chao of the American Cancer Society, Atlanta, Georgia, and colleagues examined the relation between long term meat consumption and the risk of colon and rectal cancer in 148 610 adults aged 50 to 74 years in the United States. The patients all provided information on consumption of red meat, poultry and fish, and processed meat in 1982 and then again in 1992-3. The study participants were all enrolled in the second cancer prevention study (CPS-II).

Dietary assessment was based on a 68 item questionnaire about the frequency of intake of certain foods. The researchers estimated consumption of each meat item (in grams per week) on the basis of the average frequency that meat was eaten each week, the number of grams in a medium serving, and the serving size.

The authors considered red meat to include the following individual or grouped items on the questionnaire: bacon; sausage; hamburgers, cheeseburgers, meatloaf, or casserole with minced beef; beef (such as steaks and roasts, and including sandwiches); beef stew, or "pot pie" with carrots or other vegetables; liver, including chicken livers; pork, including chops, roast; hot dogs; and ham, bologna (sausage), salami, or luncheon meat. Processed meat was defined as including bacon; sausage; hot dogs; and ham, bologna, salami, or luncheon meat.

The researchers found that high intake of red and processed meat reported in 1992-3 was associated with a higher risk of colorectal cancer after adjustment for age and energy intake but not after further adjustment for body mass index, cigarette smoking, and other covariates.

The researchers identified a total of 1667 colorectal cancers from when the participants last reported on meat consumption (1992-3) until 31 August 2001. For processed meat, when long term consumption was taken into account, people in the highest third of consumption (both in 1982 and in 1992-3) had a higher risk of distal colon cancer (risk ratio 1.50; 95% confidence interval 1.04 to 2.17) than those in the lowest third. The relative risk for rectal cancer for high consumption of red meat as a whole was also raised (1.43; 1.00 to 2.05).

Long term consumption of poultry and fish was inversely associated with risk of both proximal and distal colon cancer. Those with the highest consumption of fish and poultry had a relative risk of colon cancer of 0.84 (0.70 to 1.02).

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