Can coffee prevent skin cancer? Basic knowledge of coffee

Erica Lofterfield (Erikka Loftfield), lead author of the study and a member of the National Cancer Institute, said that while the findings are encouraging for coffee drinkers, "it's not that people should change their coffee drinking habits." if you want to reduce risk, the most important thing is to reduce sun and UV exposure.

"our findings, as well as other recent studies, have reassured coffee lovers that at least they have made it clear that drinking coffee is not a risky thing." "however, our findings do not advise everyone to change their coffee drinking habits," Lofterfield told Life Science in an email. "

Review of the experimental process

Previous studies have found that drinking coffee reduces the risk of malignant melanoma. Melanoma forms in pigment cells, which are called melanocytes. In 2014, 9710 patients died of the disease and 76100 new patients were diagnosed, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Lofterfield and her team analyzed a large amount of data from a joint tracking experiment conducted by the National Institutes of Health and the American Association of retirees, which followed 447357 retirees for a decade. Eventually, there were 2904 patients with malignant melanoma (the cancer cells had spread deep into the skin) and 2874 patients with early melanoma (the cancer cells were still on the surface of the skin). "our study is by far the largest and most valuable study of the relationship between melanoma and coffee," Lofterfield said. "

Participants reported their daily coffee consumption, as well as other cancer risk factors, such as exercise, alcohol intake and body mass index. To collect ultraviolet radiation from participants, the researchers collected the amount of light NASA got at each person's home.