Diet and the risk of lung cancer among women. A hospital-based case-control study

Variation in diet has been suspected to be one of cofactors related to geographic variation in lung cancer risk, namely for women, or other population groups with a low exposure to cigarette smoking. The study has been designed to obtain more insight into possible associations between diet and lung cancer risk among women in a country with a Central European socioeconomic background. In a hospital-based case-control study personal interviews of 282 female lung cancer cases and 1120 female controls were done using a structured standard questionnaire. Cigarette smoking was the most important factor associated with excess risk for lung cancer among women. Significantly increased risk was found both among current smokers (OR = 9.22), and ex-smokers (OR = 7.11). Positive dose-response gradients (p < 0.001) were observed between lung cancer risk and the daily number of cigarettes, duration of smoking, and number of pack-years. For squamous-, small- and large-cell cancers combined, significant associations of lung cancer risk with the consumption of red meat and poultry (OR = 2.33, and OR = 8.67, respectively), and an inverse association with the consumption of vegetables (OR = 0.55) were found. No such variations in risk were observed for adenocarcinoma, including the bronchioalveolar cancer type. For all lung cancer types combined, coffee drinking showed a significant inverse association with lung cancer risk risk (OR = 0.66). While smoking is the major risk for lung cancer, diet may have a contributory role. Variations in the intake of some components of diet, namely red meat, poultry, vegetables, and coffee may contribute to understanding variations in the risk of lung cancer among Czech women.