Annals of Oncology Advance Access originally published online on October 16, 2006
Annals of Oncology 2007 18(1):40-44; doi:10.1093/annonc/mdl346
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© 2006 European Society for Medical Oncology
epidemiology |
Artificial sweeteners and cancer risk in a network of case–control studies
1 Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche ‘Mario Negri’, Via Eritrea 62, 20157 Milan
2 Servizio di Epidemiologia e Biostatistica, Centro di Riferimento Oncologico, Via Pedemontana Occ.le, 33081 Aviano (Pordenone), Italy
3 International Agency for Research on Cancer, 150 Cours Albert Thomas, F-69372 cedex 08, Lyon, France
4 Unità di Epidemiologia, Istituto Tumori ‘Fondazione Pascale’, Via Mariano Semmola, 80100 Naples
5 Policlinico di Monza, Via Amati 11, 20052 Monza (MI)
6 Istituto di Statistica Medica e Biometria, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Venezian 1, 20133 Milan, Italy
* Correspondence to: Dr S. Gallus, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche ‘Mario Negri’, Via Eritrea 62, 20157 Milan, Italy. Tel: +39 02 39014 526; Fax: +39 02 33200231; E-mail: gallus{at}marionegri.it
Background: The role of sweeteners on cancer risk has been widely debated over the last few decades. To provide additional information on saccharin and other sweeteners (mainly aspartame), we considered data from a large network of case–control studies.
Methods: An integrated network of case–control studies has been conducted between 1991 and 2004 in Italy. Cases were 598 patients with incident, histologically confirmed cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx, 304 of the oesophagus, 1225 of the colon, 728 of the rectum, 460 of the larynx, 2569 of the breast, 1031 of the ovary, 1294 of the prostate and 767 of the kidney (renal cell carcinoma). Controls were 7028 patients (3301 men and 3727 women) admitted to the same hospitals as cases for acute, non-neoplastic disorders. Odds ratios (ORs), and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs), were derived by unconditional logistic regression models.
Results: The ORs for consumption of saccharin were 0.83 (95% CI 0.30–2.29) for cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx, 1.58 (95% CI 0.59–4.25) for oesophageal, 0.95 (95% CI 0.67–1.35) for colon, 0.93 (95% CI 0.60–1.45) for rectal, 1.55 (95% CI 0.76–3.16) for laryngeal, 1.01 (95% CI 0.77–1.33) for breast, 0.46 (95% CI 0.29–0.74) for ovarian, 0.91 (95% CI 0.59–1.40) for prostate and 0.79 (95% CI 0.49–1.28) for kidney cancer. The ORs for consumption of other sweeteners, mainly aspartame, were 0.77 (95% CI 0.39–1.53) for cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx, 0.77 (95% CI 0.34–1.75) for oesophageal, 0.90 (95% CI 0.70–1.16) for colon, 0.71 (95% CI 0.50–1.02) for rectal, 1.62 (95% CI 0.84–3.14) for laryngeal, 0.80 (95% CI 0.65–0.97) for breast, 0.75 (95% CI 0.56–1.00) for ovarian, 1.23 (95% CI 0.86–1.76) for prostate and 1.03 (95% CI 0.73–1.46) for kidney cancer. A significant inverse trend in risk for increasing categories of total sweeteners was found for breast and ovarian cancer, and a direct one for laryngeal cancer.
Conclusion: The present work indicates a lack of association between saccharin, aspartame and other sweeteners and the risk of several common neoplasms.
Key words: cancer, case–control study, risk factor, sweeteners