title: Alcohol consumption and prostate cancer risk:  a meta-analysis of the dose-risk relation.
abstract: Inconsistent results on the relationship between alcohol drinking and prostate cancer have been found. In order to provide a definite quantification of the dose-risk relation, we investigated the risk of prostate cancer at different levels of alcohol consumption, by conducting a meta-analysis of epidemiological studies. We performed a literature search using PubMed of all case-control and cohort studies published as original articles in English up to December 2010. We identified 50 case-control and 22 cohort studies, including a total of 52 899 prostate cancer cases. We derived pooled meta-analytic estimates using random-effects models, taking into account the correlation between estimates. We performed a dose-risk analysis using nonlinear random-effects meta-regression models. The overall relative risk for any alcohol drinking compared with non/occasional drinking was 1.06 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01-1.10]. The relative risks were 1.05 (95% CI, 1.02-1.08), 1.06 (95% CI, 1.01-1.11), and 1.08 (95% CI, 0.97-1.20) for light (≤1 drink/day), moderate (>1 to <4 drinks/day), and heavy alcohol drinking (≥4 drinks/day), respectively. This comprehensive meta-analysis provided no evidence of a material association between alcohol drinking and prostate cancer, even at high doses.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Clinical Medicine and Prevention, Centre of Biostatistics for Clinical Epidemiology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cadore 48, Monza, Italy. m.rota9@campus.unimib.it
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rota
authors.forename: Lorenza
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Scotti
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Turati
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tramacere
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Islami
authors.forename: Rino
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bellocco
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Negri
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Corrao
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boffetta
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: La Vecchia
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bagnardi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D012306:Risk; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol