NEW YORK (Reuters) -- A new report finds that there is no
link between a diet high in fats and an increased risk of breast
cancer.
The findings, published in a British journal, the Journal of
Epidemiology and Community Health, contradicts the results of
previous studies in animals dating from the 1940s which found a
direct link between a high-fat diet and an increased risk of
breast cancer.
What causes breast cancer is still unknown, though various
risk factors have been proposed. Diet is considered a prime
factor in the development of breast cancer. "It is important to
discover if diet is involved in the aetiology of breast cancer,
as it is more amenable to change than some other risk factors,"
note the authors of the report.
Unfortunately, research studies that have looked for a
possible relationship between breast cancer and a diet high in
fats have reported conflicting results. Some studies showed an
increased risk of breast cancer in a diet high in fats, others
showed a protective effect with a high-fat diet. The authors
believe that some of these studies may be biased as the "recall
of usual pre-disease intake is influenced by current, different
diet, and possibly also by knowledge of highly publicised
hypotheses" relating high-fat intake to increased risk of
breast cancer.
The results reported in this article support studies where
dietary intake information obtained prior to disease development
showed that "there was no increased risk of breast cancer
associated with higher consumption of total or saturated fat."
The authors found no significant difference in diet, except for
iron and vitamin E levels, between women with breast cancer,
women with benign breast disease, or women who returned for
additional screening for breast cancer. There appeared to be an
increased risk of breast cancer as the level of saturated fat in
the diet increased, suggesting "that risk may increase with
increased saturated fat intake." Higher levels of iron were
associated with lower risk of cancer, whereas higher levels of
vitamin E were associated with a higher risk of cancer.
The authors state that "this study has shown no evidence to
support the hypothesis that dietary fat is an important
contributor to breast cancer rates. It is unlikely that dietary
fat intake has an important influence on breast cancer risk,
unless this
influence occurs much earlier in life."
SOURCE: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
(1998;52:105-110)
Thursday February 19 1:28 PM EST
Dietary Fat Not Linked To Breast Cancer