5/14/09
Meat cooked at high temperatures to the point of burning and charring may increase the risk of pancreatic cancer, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting.
Kristin Anderson, PhD, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, said the finding was linked to consumption of well and very well done meats cooked by frying, grilling, or barbecuing. Cooking in this way can form carcinogens, which do not form when meat is baked or stewed.
Anderson and colleagues conducted a prospective analysis that included 62,581 participants and information from surveys that were a part of the PLCO (Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian) Multi-center Screening Trial. Participants provided information about their meat intake, preferred cooking methods and doneness preferences.
Over the course of nine years, researchers identified 208 cases of pancreatic cancer. Preferences for high temperature cooked meat were generally linked with an increased risk; subjects who preferred very well done steak were almost 60% as likely to get pancreatic cancer as compared with those who ate steak less well done or did not eat steak. When overall consumption and doneness preferences were used to estimate the meat-derived carcinogen intake for subjects, those with highest intake had 70% higher risk than those with the lowest intake.
“We cannot say with absolute certainty that the risk is increased due to carcinogens formed in burned meat,” says Anderson. “However, those who enjoy either fried or barbecued meat should consider turning down the heat or cutting off burned portions when it’s finished; cook meat sufficiently to kill bacteria without excess charring.”
Source:
American Association for Cancer Research
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