Drinking coffee could reduce endometrial cancer risk

A new study [1] funded by WCRF UK has found that drinking coffee daily might lower endometrial cancer risk, particularly among obese women.

The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, investigated the association between coffee intake and endometrial cancer in the large Swedish Mammography Cohort, which included more than 60,000 women. Researchers collected information on weight, height, education, parity, medical history and lifestyle factors. Self-reported coffee consumption was assessed at baseline and after 10 years.

After 17.6 years of follow-up, 677 cases of adenocarcinoma endometrial cancer were recorded among 60,634 women in the cohort. The results show that drinking more than 2 cups of coffee a day protects against endometrial cancer. Specifically, each additional cup of coffee (where a cup is equal to 200g of coffee) was associated with a risk reduction of 10 per cent for all women, 12 per cent among overweight women and 20 per cent in obese women.

Coffee has been shown to affect the absorption and metabolism of glucose and improve insulin sensitivity. Endometrial cancer has been linked with obesity, insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia. It is possible that body weight and insulin sensitivity mediate the association between coffee and endometrial cancer. The fact that, in this study, the strongest effect of coffee was observed among overweight and obese women supports this hypothesis. Although previous studies have investigated this hypothesis, this is the largest prospective study on endometrial cancer to date.

These findings could be of major public health significance if confirmed by further research. More studies are needed to investigate the biological mechanisms by which coffee might reduce endometrial cancer risk.

Read about the results of our health professionals' survey on coffee and cancer

References

1. Friberg E et al. Coffee drinking and risk of endometrial cancer – A population-based cohort study. International Journal of Cancer. 2009; 125: 2413–2417