Coffee, decaffeinated coffee, tea, and pancreatic cancer risk: a pooled-analysis of two Italian case-control studies

To evaluate the association between coffee, decaffeinated coffee, and tea consumption and pancreatic cancer risk in a pooled analysis of two Italian case-control studies, between 1983 and 2008, we conducted two case-control studies in Northern Italy, including a total of 688 pancreatic cancer cases and 2204 hospital controls with acute, non-neoplastic diseases. We computed multivariate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for coffee drinking (mostly espresso and mocha), adjusting for age, sex, center, year of interview, education, body mass index, tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking, and diabetes. Compared with coffee nondrinkers, the multivariate OR for coffee drinkers was 1.34 (95% CI: 1.01-1.77). However, there was no trend in risk with respect to dose and duration. The OR for an increment of one cup per day was 1.05 (95% CI: 0.98-1.11). There was no heterogeneity in strata of age, sex, and other covariates, including tobacco smoking. No association emerged for decaffeinated coffee (for drinkers the OR was 0.87, 95% CI: 0.60-1.26, compared with decaffeinated coffee nondrinkers) or tea (for tea drinkers the OR was 0.92, 95% CI: 0.75-1.14). The lack of relationship with dose and duration weighs against a causal association between coffee and pancreatic cancer, which is in agreement with most evidence on the issue.