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Meta-Analysis
. 2012 Dec;23(12):3163-3170.
doi: 10.1093/annonc/mds207. Epub 2012 Jul 31.

Meat consumption and risk of lung cancer: evidence from observational studies

W S Yang  1 , M Y Wong  2 , E Vogtmann  3 , R Q Tang  1 , L Xie  1 , Y S Yang  2 , Q J Wu  1 , W Zhang  1 , Y B Xiang  4
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Meat consumption and risk of lung cancer: evidence from observational studies

W S Yang et al. Ann Oncol. 2012 Dec.

Abstract

Background: A number of epidemiological studies have reported inconsistent findings on the association between meat consumption and lung cancer.

Design: We therefore conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the relationship between meat consumption and lung cancer risk in epidemiological studies.

Results: Twenty-three case-control and 11 cohort studies were included. All studies adjusted for smoking or conducted in never smokers. The summary relative risks (RRs) of lung cancer for the highest versus lowest intake categories were 1.35 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.08-1.69) for total meat, 1.34 (95% CI 1.18-1.52) for red meat, and 1.06 (95% CI 0.90-1.25) for processed meat. An inverse association was found between poultry intake and lung cancer (RR = 0.91, 95% CI 0.85-0.97), but not for total white meat (RR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.82-1.37) or fish (RR = 1.01, 95% CI 0.96-1.07).

Conclusions: The relationship between meat intake and lung cancer risk appears to depend on the types of meat consumed. A high intake of red meat may increase the risk of lung cancer by about 35%, while a high intake of poultry decreases the risk by about 10%. More well-designed cohort studies on meat mutagens or heme iron, meat cooking preferences, and doneness level are needed to fully characterize this meat-lung cancer association.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Search strategy and selection of studies for inclusion in the meta-analysis.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Estimates (95% CIs) of total meat consumption and lung cancer risk. Squares represent study-specific estimates [size of the square reflects the study-specific statistical weight (i.e. inverse of the variance)]; horizontal lines represent 95% CIs; and diamonds represent summary estimates with corresponding 95% CIs. M, men; W, women.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Estimates (95% CIs) of red meat consumption and lung cancer risk. Squares represent study-specific estimates [size of the square reflects the study-specific statistical weight (i.e. inverse of the variance)]; horizontal lines represent 95% CIs; and diamonds represent summary estimates with corresponding 95% CIs. M, men; W, women.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Estimates (95% CIs) of poultry consumption and lung cancer risk. Squares represent study-specific estimates [size of the square reflects the study-specific statistical weight (i.e. inverse of the variance)]; horizontal lines represent 95% CIs; and diamonds represent summary estimates with corresponding 95% CIs. M, men; W, women.
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