I recently heard reports of a study linking alcohol to breast cancer. I was surprised because I thought this was old news. Can you update me on this issue?
You're right: this is a pretty old story. Over the years a number of studies have found an increased risk of breast cancer among women who drink alcohol. Some of the most compelling data come from the American Cancer Society Cancer Prevention Study, published in 2002. They show that as little as one drink a day, and perhaps even less, increases the risk of dying from breast cancer in postmenopausal women by 30 percent compared to women who drink no alcohol. The study included more than 242,000 women and followed them for more than 14 years. No such risk was seen in the premenopausal and perimenopausal women participating in this particular study, but other investigations have found increased risk from alcohol in those populations also.
The most recent findings come from analysis of data from a study that began in 1995 and included more than 184,000 women. Here, researchers found that, compared to women who didn't drink at all, those who had a single daily drink had a seven percent increased risk of estrogen-receptor- and progesterone-receptor-positive breast cancer, the most common form of the disease. In this study, women who had one to two drinks a day had a 32 percent increased risk; those who had three or more drinks had up to a 51 percent increased risk. All types of alcohol - wine, beer or hard liquor - had the same effect.
The results of this study were presented at the American Association of Cancer Research conference on April 13, 2008 and in a published abstract. Until the full report is published in a peer-reviewed journal, they should be viewed as preliminary.
Still, accumulating evidence suggests that alcohol consumption does influence breast cancer risk, perhaps by interfering with the way the body metabolizes estrogen. If you have an occasional drink, alcohol is unlikely to pose much of a threat. But if you customarily have one or more drinks a day, your breast cancer risk may be higher than necessary. Women can't avoid the two biggest risks of breast cancer - being female and getting older. But the additional risk posed by drinking alcohol is one that you can, and should, reduce, especially if family or personal history puts you at above-average risk for this serious disease.
Andrew Weil, M.D.
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译文:
喝酒导致乳癌么?
最近，我听了关于酒精和乳癌两者之间联系的学术报告.我很震惊,因为我认为这已经是旧新闻了.这件事怎么会被拆旧补新呢?
你是对的:这是个很老的故事.过去了那么多年,很多研究发现喝酒的女人使患乳癌的风险增高.美国癌症协会在2002年出版的＜癌症预防研究＞中出据了最强有力的数据,他们表示,每天尽量少喝酒,或许能降低30%的绝经女人死于乳癌风险的增高,与之对比的是不喝酒的女人.这个研究包括了242,000多位女人,这个研究跟随了她们14年多.参与这项特殊研究的处于停经前期和围绝经期的女人没有这样的风险.但其他调查发现这类人喝酒同样会增高风险.
最近的发现来自一个始于1995年，包括了184,000多女人的研究分析数据.在此,研究员发现,和完全不喝酒的女人对比,那些每天喝酒的女人,患ER阳性和PR阳性乳癌(这种疾病最常见的形式)的风险增加了7%.在这项研究中,每天喝一回到两回的女人使风险增加了32%;那些喝三回到四回女人,增加的风险则高达51%.所有的酒类,酒,啤酒,烈酒有同样的效能．
研究结果在2008年4月13日的美国癌症研究协会会议上的出版摘要中被提出.直到整份报告出版在回顾性质的期刊上,他们应该视为初步研究.
尽管如此,累聚的证据仍然表明喝酒的确影响患乳癌的风险,或许由干扰身体代谢雌性激素引起的.如果你只是场合性的喝酒,酒精不可能造成多少威胁.但如果你每天通常性的喝一回或更多,你患乳癌的风险可能高于必然风险.女人不能避免两个患乳癌的最大风险--作为女性和变老.但喝酒引起的附加风险是一个你可以或应该减少的.特别是家族和个人病历史使你有患此类疾病的超常风险的人．
Andrew Weil,M.D.
未完待续