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Data from a series of case-control studies, conducted in Italy and Switzerland between 1991 and 2001, have been analyzed to evaluate the role of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) intake in the etiology of cancer of oral cavity and pharynx (736 cases, 1,772 controls), esophagus (395 cases, 1,066 controls), large bowel (1,394 colon, 886 rectum, 4,765 controls), breast (2,900 cases, 3,122 controls) and ovary (1,031 cases, 2,411 controls). Controls were patients admitted to hospital for acute, non-neoplastic conditions, unrelated to modifications in diet. The multivariate odds ratios (OR) for the highest quintile of n-3 PUFAs compared to the lowest one were 0.5 for oral and pharyngeal cancer, 0.5 for oesophageal cancer, 0.7 for colon cancer, 0.8 for rectal and breast cancer and 0.6 for ovarian cancer; the estimates and the trends in risk were significant for all cancer sites, excluding rectal and breast cancer. The estimates for an increase in n-3 PUFAs of 1 g/week were 0.70 for oral and pharyngeal cancer, 0.71 for oesophageal, 0.88 for colon, 0.91 for rectal, 0.90 for breast and 0.85 for ovarian cancer. All the estimates were statistically significant, excluding that for rectal cancer, and consistent across strata of age and gender. These results suggest that n-3 PUFAs decrease the risk of several cancers. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dietary fibre has been reported to protect from several neoplasms, but the issue remains controversial. No previous study considered in depth the topic of fibres and prostate cancer. A multicentre case-control study was conducted in Italy from 1991 to 2002, including 1,294 men with incident, histologically confirmed prostate cancer and 1,451 controls admitted to the same network of hospitals as cases with acute nonmalignant conditions. Multivariate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were obtained after allowance for major identified confounding factors, including total energy intake. Compared to the lowest quintile, the OR of prostate cancer for the highest quintile of total fibre intake was 0.93 (95% CI 0.71–1.22). The risk was inversely related with soluble fibre (OR = 0.89, 95% CI 0.78–1.02, for a difference between 80th and 20th percentile), cellulose (OR = 0.88, 95% CI 0.78–1.01) and vegetable fibre (OR = 0.82, 95% CI 0.73–0.93). These relationships were consistent across strata of age, family history of prostate cancer, body mass index and education. Vegetable fibres appear, therefore, to have a favourable association with prostate cancer risk. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A considerable public concern about cancer risk from acrylamide-rich foods followed the announcement that high concentrations of acrylamide are found in fried potatoes and potato chips and, more generally, in starch-containing foods cooked at high temperatures. From a series of hospital-based case–control studies conducted in Italy and Switzerland between 1991 and 2000, we have analyzed the relation between intake of fried/baked potatoes and cancer risk. The cancer sites considered were oral cavity and pharynx (749 cases, 1,772 controls), esophagus (395 cases, 1,066 controls), larynx (527 cases, 1,297 controls), large bowel (1,225 colon and 728 rectum cases, 4,154 controls), breast (2,569 cases, 2,588 controls) and ovary (1,031 cases, 2,411 controls). All cancer cases were incident and histologically confirmed. Controls were subjects admitted to the same network of hospitals of cases for acute, non-neoplastic conditions. All the odds ratios (OR) for the highest vs. the lowest tertile of intake ranged between 0.8–1.1. We found no evidence of interaction with age, gender, alcohol and tobacco use. Our data provide reassuring evidence for the lack of an important association between consumption of fried/baked potatoes and cancer risk. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]