Alcohol consumption and ovarian cancer risk

To study the influence of alcohol consumption on the risk of ovarian cancer in women under age 55, the authors examined data collected in a multicenter, population-based case-control study--the Centers for Disease Control's Cancer and Steroid Hormone Study. Between August 1981 and December 1982, 433 women 20-54 years of age with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer and 2,915 women 20-54 years of age selected at random from the same geographic areas were asked about their consumption of alcoholic beverages during the previous five years. Women who drank any alcohol during the five-year period had a risk of ovarian cancer of 0.9 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.7-1.2) compared with nondrinkers. Risk was not associated with the type of alcoholic beverage consumed, nor were the results affected by controlling for demographic characteristics and oral contraceptive use. Although there was no association between moderate alcohol consumption and ovarian cancer, women who drank more than about 20 drinks per week had a relative risk of ovarian cancer of 0.5 (95% CI = 0.2-0.9) compared with women who did not drink.