Previous studies have already linked a high consumption of grilled, barbecue or smoked meat with an increased risk of breast cancer. Now, research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA) has found that it can also increase the risk of mortality from all causes in women who have survived the disease.
Thanks to early detection of cancer and better treatments, the statistics of women surviving breast cancer continue to increase . However, this study suggests that these women’s lives can be shortened by eating large amounts of grilled or barbecued meats.
While many studies have linked meats cooked at high temperatures with an increased risk of breast cancer, it has not been studied whether eating such meats could affect survival after breast cancer.
For this reason, the researchers examined 1,508 women who had been diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in 1996 or 1997 . At the beginning of the study, all participants were asked about the consumption of grilled, barbecued or smoked meats in each decade of their life. Five years after his intervention, all-cause mortality increased with high intake of grilled meats.
Thus, over a mean of 17.6 years of follow-up, 597 of the women died; of these deaths, 237 (39.5%) were associated with breast cancer. The association between a high intake of these meats and survival from breast cancer increased the odds of mortality from all causes by 23% compared to those who reported a low intake.
No doubt. “The high intake of grilled / barbecued and smoked meat can increase mortality after breast cancer,” said Humberto Parada, co-author of the work.
The study has been published in The Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
