Alcohol drinking and all cancer mortality: a meta-analysis
A partir d'une revue de la littérature publiée avant avril 2012 (18 études de cohorte indépendantes), cette méta-analyse analyse la relation entre la consommation d'alcool et la mortalité par cancer
Background Epidemiological studies have suggested an inconsistent relationship between alcohol drinking and risk of all cancer mortality. As far as we know, no meta-analysis has been conducted to explore this issue.Patients and methods We carried out a PubMed search to find relevant articles published before April 2012 in English. Categorical and dose–response meta-analyses were conducted to identify the impact of alcohol drinking on all cancer mortality. Potential sources of heterogeneity were detected by meta-regression and stratification analyses. Sensitivity and cumulative meta-analyses were also carried out.Results Eighteen independent cohort studies met the inclusion criteria. Compared with non/occasional drinkers, the pooled relative risks (RRs) were 0.91 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.89–0.94] for light, 1.02 (95% CI 0.99–1.06) for moderate, and 1.31 (95% CI 1.23–1.39) for heavy drinkers. Former drinkers presented a higher risk (RR = 1.32, 95% CI 1.15–1.50) than current drinkers (RR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.98–1.16). There was a J-shaped relationship between all cancer mortality and alcohol consumption in males but not in females.Conclusions This meta-analysis confirms the health hazards of heavy drinking (≥50 g/day) and benefits of light drinking (≤12.5 g/day). Large-sample, well-designed, prospective epidemiological studies, especially on heavy drinking among women, should be developed in future.