Fruit and vegetables, and human cancer

Area of Science:

• Epidemiology
• Nutritional Science
• Oncology

Background:

• Growing evidence links high fruit and vegetable consumption to reduced cancer risk.
• Associations are strongest for epithelial cancers, including digestive and respiratory tracts.
• Weaker associations are observed for hormone-related cancers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption frequency and cancer risk.
• To quantify the protective effects of specific foods like tomatoes.
• To assess population attributable risks for low intake in a Mediterranean population.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from case-control studies conducted in northern Italy since 1983.
• Analyzed relative risks (RRs) for various neoplasms based on tertiles of vegetable intake.
• Examined specific associations for fruit consumption and individual food items like tomatoes.

Main Results:

• Highest vegetable intake showed RRs ranging from 0.2 to 0.5 for common neoplasms.
• Protective effects were most pronounced for epithelial and hormone-related neoplasms.
• Tomatoes demonstrated consistent protection (RRs 0.4-0.7), especially for gastrointestinal cancers.
• No significant association found for non-epithelial lymphoid neoplasms.
• Low intake of fruits and vegetables accounted for 15-40% of digestive tract cancer cases.

Conclusions:

• Increased fruit and vegetable consumption can substantially reduce epithelial cancer risk.
• Dietary interventions focusing on fruits and vegetables are crucial for public health cancer prevention strategies.
• Combined with reduced tobacco and alcohol use, dietary changes offer significant risk reduction for upper digestive and respiratory tract neoplasms.