COFFEE AND TEA MAY BE ASSOCIATED WITH LOWER RISK OF HEAD AND NECK CANCER

Head and neck cancer, especially cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, sinuses and nasal cavity, and salivary glands, is the seventh most common type of cancer.

A recent study, published in the Journal Cancer, found that drinking more than four cups of coffee a day is associated with a lower risk of head and neck cancer.

The data that most surprised the study author, Yuan-Chin Amy Lee, was that decaffeinated coffee also had positive effects similar to those observed with caffeinated coffee. This suggests that the benefits may not be due to caffeine but to other compounds in coffee, such as polyphenols, which are antioxidants.

Previous research had already studied the relationship between coffee and tea consumption and cancer. In a study published in 2015, researchers observed a decreased risk of endometrial cancer with coffee intake and a decreased risk of cancer overall with tea intake.

In other research, coffee has been found to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and that moderate coffee consumption may be beneficial against heart disease. Coffee consumption has also been linked to a lower risk of breast cancer.

The data from this study were collected based on head and neck cancer studies from around the world. Lee’s team used data from 14 studies, harmonized the data, as each study gave participants a different questionnaire, and adjusted them to account for confounding factors.

The data:

• The analysis looked at 9,548 head and neck cancer cases and 15,783 controls from 14 studies.
• Drinking more than four cups of coffee a day has been associated with a reduced risk of head and neck cancer, particularly of the oral cavity and oropharynx, compared to non-drinkers.
• Drinking three to four cups of coffee a day was associated with a reduced risk of hypopharyngeal cancer, compared to non-drinkers.
• Drinking less than one cup of decaffeinated coffee per day has been associated with a reduced risk of oral cancer, compared to non-drinkers.
• Drinking one cup or less of tea per day has been associated with a reduced risk of head and neck cancer, particularly hypopharyngeal cancer, compared to non-drinkers.

Source: ORIGINAL ARTICLE  “Coffee and tea consumption and the risk of head and neck cancer: An updated pooled analysis in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology Consortium”

https://acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cncr.35620