Alcohol consumption and lung cancer risk in never smokers.
OBJECTIVE
The main objective of this study is to analyse the role of alcohol consumption on lung cancer risk in people who have never smoked.


METHODS
We conducted a systematic review of the scientific literature following the PRISMA statement. We searched Medline, EMBASE and CINAHL using different combinations of MeSH terms and free text. We included cohort studies, pooled cohort studies and case-control studies comprising at least 25 anatomopathologically-confirmed diagnoses of lung cancer cases, a sample size larger than 100 individuals and more than five years of follow-up for cohort studies. We excluded studies that did not specifically report results for never smokers. We developed a quality score to assess the quality of the included papers and we ultimately included 14 investigations with a heterogeneous design and methodology.


RESULTS
Results for alcohol consumption and lung cancer risk in never smokers are inconclusive; however, several studies showed a dose-response pattern for total alcohol consumption and for spirits. Heterogeneous results were found for wine and beer.


CONCLUSIONS
No clear effect is observed for alcohol consumption. Due to the limited evidence, no conclusion can be drawn for beer or wine consumption. There is little research available on the effect of alcohol on lung cancer risk for people who have never smoked, and more studies are urgently needed on this topic.
Service of Preventive Medicine, University Hospital Complex of A Coruña, Spain; Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela (A Coruña), Spain.
José Antonio
JA
García-Lavandeira
Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela (A Coruña), Spain; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Spain. Electronic address: alberto.ruano@usc.es.
Alberto
A
Ruano-Ravina
Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela (A Coruña), Spain; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Spain; Service of Preventive Medicine, University Hospital Complex of Santiago de Compostela (A Coruña), Spain.
Juan Miguel
JM
Barros-Dios
D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001515:Beer / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D018401:Sample Size; D014920:Wine / Q000009:adverse effects
Etanol Neoplasias pulmonares; Ethanol; Lung neoplasms Never smokers; Nunca fumadores; Review; Revisión