title: Meat, fish and egg intake and risk of breast cancer.
abstract: Intakes of animal protein, meat, and eggs have been associated with breast cancer incidence and mortality in ecological studies, but data from long-term prospective studies are limited. We therefore examined these relationships in the Nurses' Health Study. We followed 88,647 women for 18 years, with 5 assessments of diet by food frequency questionnaire, cumulatively averaged and updated over time. We calculated the relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for risk of developing invasive breast cancer, over categories of nutrient and food intake. During follow-up, 4,107 women developed invasive breast cancer. Compared to the lowest quintile of intake, the RR and 95% CI for the highest quintile of intake were 1.02 (0.92-1.14) for animal protein, 0.93 (0.83-1.05) for red meat and 0.89 (0.79-1.00) for all meat. Results did not differ by menopausal status or family history of breast cancer. We found no evidence that intake of meat or fish during mid-life and later was associated with risk of breast cancer.
authors.affiliation: Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA. michelle.holmes@channing.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Michelle D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Holmes
authors.forename: Graham A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Colditz
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Hunter
authors.forename: Susan E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hankinson
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rosner
authors.forename: Frank E
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: Speizer
authors.forename: Walter C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Willett
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004531:Eggs / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D005399:Fishes; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008460:Meat / Q000009:adverse effects*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors