Epidemiology of Coffee and Pancreatic Cancer

The association between pancreatic cancer and putative risk factors was examined using 275 incident cases and 7994 controls interviewed in six United States cities for a major study of tobacco-related diseases. From the comparison population were excluded patients with other diseases postulated to be associated with pancreatic cancer (e.g., other pancreatic diseases and diseases of the gallbladder) and those admitted for disorders known to be associated with smoking. After carefully controlling for age, the data failed to indicate an association between coffee consumption and pancreatic cancer (odds ratio congruent to 1.0). This was true both before and after adjustment for cigarette smoking and in both males and females. There was a statistically significant association between pancreatic cancer and smoking in both males and females (odds ratio 3.0 for males who smoked more than 1.5 packs/day and 2.0 for females who smoked more than 1 pack/day).