Trans-Lycopene and β-Cryptoxanthin Intake and Stomach Cancer in Vietnamese Men: A Pilot Case-Control Study

To examine the association between dietary intake of Trans-Lycopene and β-Cryptoxanthin and stomach cancer in Vietnamese men.

A case-control study including 80 male incident stomach cancer cases and 146 male controls was performed in a general hospital in Viet Nam. A validated semi-quantitative food frequency (SQFFQ) and demographic lifestyle questionnaire were designed, and venous blood samples were collected to determine H. pylori status by IgG ELISA. Nutrient intake was converted using the data of SQFFQ and the Nutritive Composition Table of Vietnamese Foods, updated in 2019. The respective associations between Trans-Lycopene and β-Cryptoxanthin intake and stomach cancer were examined using unconditional logistic regression analysis with adjustments for possible cofactors.

Both Trans-Lycopene and β-Cryptoxanthin intake and stomach cancer showed a significantly inverse association, tertile-3 versus tertile-1, (OR = 0.15, 95%CI: 0.06-0.35, p trend = 0.00) and (OR = 0.34, 95%CI: 0.14-0.79, p trend = 0.02, respectively). For Trans-Lycopene intake stratifying by H. pylori status remained the benefit effect against stomach cancer among H. pylori-negative participants (OR = 0.15, 95%CI: 0.03-0.69, p trend = 0.02) and H. pylori-positive participants (OR = 0.13, 95%CI: 0.04-0.42, p trend = 0.00).

Both Trans-Lycopene and β-Cryptoxanthin intake showed a strong protective effect against stomach cancer. The findings suggest that these two types of fat-soluble micronutrients would be considered as an anti-cancer therapy for both primary and secondary prevention.