Canned Fish Consumption and Upper Digestive Tract Cancers

Abstract

Canned fish is a widely consumed and affordable food whose effect on cancer risk has been little investigated. We studied its effect on risk of upper digestive tract cancers using data from a network of hospital-based case-control studies from Northern Italy providing information about canned fish consumption as a separate item and including a total of 946 patients with oral cavity and pharynx cancer, 304 patients with esophageal cancer, 230 patients with gastric cancer and 3273 controls. Twenty-three percent of patients with cancer of the oral cavity or pharynx and 26% of those with cancer of the stomach consumed ≥1 serving per week of canned fish, compared to 40% and 49% of the respective control group. Among cases of esophageal cancer and controls 22% consumed ≥1 serving per week of canned fish. Odds ratios for ≥1 vs <1 portion per week were 0.79 (95% Confidence Interval, CI: 0.64–0.97) for cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx, and 0.59 (95% CI: 0.41–0.86) for stomach cancer, whereas there was no inverse association with esophageal cancer. These findings suggest a favorable role of canned fish for selected upper digestive tract cancers.

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Dr. Alberto Dolci, Dr. Antonio De Caro, Dr. Arianna Lugani and Dr. Lionel Caillaud for the continuous support in conducting this investigation.

Authors’ Contributions

BDA and CF conceived the project, designed the study and wrote the first draft of the manuscript. IA conducted the statistical analyses. EN, DS, AC, AG, WG, CLV designed the original case-control studies on upper digestive tract cancers and collected the data. FT and FB routinely manage and update the databases. All authors reviewed successive drafts and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Data Share Statement

Data described in the manuscript will not be made available in accordance with the indication of the Ethic Committee.

Declaration of Interests

CF is a member of the Scientific Board for the editorial and educational campaign “Fish is healthy” sponsored by Bolton Food SpA.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Data collection was supported by the AIRC Foundation. Data analysis study was funded by Bolton Food SpA. The funders had no role in study design; in the collection, analysis, or interpretation of the data; or in the decision to submit the paper for publication.