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Coffee May Help You Fight Endometrial Cancer

Coffee May Help You Fight Endometrial Cancer

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Caffeinated coffee intake is found to provide better protection against the risk of endometrial cancer, a specific type of uterus cancer.

Highlights:

  • Endometrial cancer has been regarded as the second most common and the fourth leading cause of mortality in women (from gynecological cancer) globally
  • Among several risk factors, coffee consumption has also been linked as one of it
  • However, a new study shows that the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of coffee may reduce the risk of endometrial cancer
The risk of endometrial cancer (EC) — cancer that affects the lining of the uterus — may be lowered by higher coffee consumption, as per a study published in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research.

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Beneficial Effects of Coffee

Coffee is one of the most commonly preferred beverages that contain more than 1,000 antioxidant and anti-inflammatory chemical compounds. It not only stimulates your energy levels but also replenishes your body with its potential load of benefits.
Although the threshold for coffee consumption may vary from person to person, the safe limit is 400 mg of caffeine, that is, 4 to 5 cups of coffee per day as per the US Food and Drug Administration.

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Endometrial Cancer

The lining of the uterus (the reproductive organ in a woman’s pelvis) is called as endometrium. The growth of any malignant (cancer) cells in the endometrial tissue is called endometrial cancer or EC.

EC is one of the challenging gynecological cancers that has affected 382,069 new cases and attributed to 89,929 deaths globally in 2018. Some of the risk factors of EC are obesity, metabolic syndrome, intake of tamoxifen (for breast cancer), or estrogen-only pills (without progesterone).

However, earlier lines of evidence suggest that drinking coffee is one of the risk factors for endometrial cancer. Hence the present study intended to analyze the association between drinking coffee and EC risk.

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Coffee and Endometrial Cancer

The team analyzed 24 studies (using standard database search until July 2018) on coffee intake (12 case-control and 12 cohort studies) that recorded the occurrence of 9,833 new endometrial cancer cases in 699,234 individuals.

It was found that people who had the highest intake of coffee were having a relatively lower risk of developing endometrial cancer by 29% when compared to those who consumed the lowest amount of coffee.

Coffee to Prevent Endometrial Cancer

There have been earlier studies that have highlighted the link between drinking coffee and significantly reduced risk for endometrial cancer.

It is found that a high intake of caffeine helps to reduce the levels of free estrogen (higher levels stimulate the proliferation of endometrial cells and cancer), thereby diminishing the risk of endometrial cancer.

In addition, coffee is also found to contain phytoestrogens and antioxidants that help in decreasing the risk of endometrial cancer. The present study also highlights various mechanisms that depict the coffee’s potential anti-cancer effects.

“Further studies with large sample size are needed… to obtain more information regarding the benefits of coffee drinking in relation to the risk of endometrial cancer,” say the study authors.

References:
  1. Association between coffee drinking and endometrial cancer risk: A meta-analysis - (https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jog.15139)
  2. Endometrial Cancer Treatment (PDQ®)–Patient Version - (https://www.cancer.gov/types/uterine/patient/endometrial-treatment-pdq)
  3. Coffee drinking and risk of endometrial cancer – a population-based cohort study - (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2773380/#:~:text=More%20specifically%2C%20women%20drinking%202,endometrial%20cancer%20among%20all%20women.)
  4. Global, Regional, and National Burden of Endometrial Cancer, 1990–2017: Results From the Global Burden of Disease Study, 2017 - (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6930915/#:~:text=Endometrial%20cancer%20(EC)%20is%20an,worldwide%20in%202018%20(2).)


Source-Medindia


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