Java junkies rejoice: Drinking at least four cups of caffeinated coffee per day may reduce risk of malignant melanoma, a new study suggests.
The findings appear in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Exactly how coffee decreases the risk of malignant melanoma is not clear, but certain coffee compounds may suppress carcinogenesis, reduce inflammation, and lower oxidative stress and genetic damage in cells. More research is needed to confirm this link.
Researchers reviewed data on 447,000 participants aged 50 to 71 years old who were cancer-free at the beginning of the study. More than 2,900 developed malignant melanoma, and more than 1,900 developed melanoma in situ during about 10 years of follow-up. Researchers controlled for ultraviolet radiation exposure, body mass index, age, sex, physical activity, alcohol intake, and smoking history.
Those individuals who drank four cups a day were 20% less likely to develop malignant melanoma than their counterparts who consumed less joe on a daily basis. There was also a trend toward more protection with higher coffee intake, the study showed.
There was no link seen between consumption of decaffeinated coffee and melanoma.
Exactly how coffee decreases the risk of malignant melanoma is not clear, but certain coffee compounds may suppress carcinogenesis, reduce inflammation, and lower oxidative stress and genetic damage in cells. More research is needed to confirm this link.
“It’s intriguing,” says Darrell Rigel, MD, a medical director at Schweiger Dermatology Group in New York City. “Any study that presents data to help in potentially lowering the skin cancer risk should be looked into further.” Rigel was not affiliated with the new study.
