Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and risk of bladder cancer in the EPIC cohort study.

There is growing evidence of the protective role of the Mediterranean diet (MD) on cancer. However, to date no epidemiological study has investigated the influence of the MD on bladder cancer. We evaluated the association between adherence to the MD and risk of urothelial cell bladder cancer (UCC), according to tumor aggressiveness, in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). The analysis included 477,312 participants, recruited from ten European countries between 1991 and 2000. Information from validated dietary questionnaires was used to develop a relative Mediterranean diet score (rMED), including nine dietary components. Cox regression models were used to assess the effect of the rMED on UCC risk, while adjusting for dietary energy and tobacco smoking of any kind. Stratified analyses were performed by sex, BMI, smoking status, European region and age at diagnosis. During an average follow-up of 11 years, 1,425 participants (70.9% male) were diagnosed with a first primary UCC. There was a negative but non-significant association between a high versus low rMED score and risk of UCC overall (HR: 0.84 [95% CI 0.69, 1.03]) and risk of aggressive (HR: 0.88 [95% CI 0.61, 1.28]) and non-aggressive tumors (HR: 0.78 [95% CI 0.54, 1.14]). Although there was no effect modification in the stratified analyses, there was a significant 34% (p = 0.043) decreased risk of UCC in current smokers with a high rMED score. In EPIC, the MD was not significantly associated with risk of UCC, although we cannot exclude that a MD may reduce risk in current smokers.

Dietary intake of the water-soluble vitamins B1, B2, B6, B12 and C in 10 countries in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the intake of vitamins thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), B6 (pyridoxine), B12 (cobalamine) and C (ascorbic acid) and their food sources among 27 centres in 10 countries participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. METHODS: Between 1995 and 2000, 36 034 persons aged between 35 and 74 years were administered a standardized 24-h dietary recall using a computerized interview software programme (EPIC-SOFT). Intakes of the four B vitamins and vitamin C were estimated using the standardized EPIC Nutrient Database (ENDB). Mean intakes were adjusted for age and weighted by season and day of recall. RESULTS: Intake of B vitamins did not vary considerably between centres, except in the UK health-conscious cohort, in which substantially higher intakes of thiamine and lower intakes of vitamin B12 were reported compared with other centres. Overall, meat was the most important contributor to the B vitamins in all centres except in the UK health-conscious group. Vitamin C showed a clear geographical gradient, with higher intakes in the southern centres as compared with the northern ones; this was more pronounced in men than in women. Vegetables and fruits were major contributors to vitamin C in all centres, but juices and potatoes were also important sources in the northern centres. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed no major differences across centres in the mean intakes of B vitamins (thiamine, riboflavin, B6, B12), whereas a tendency towards a north-south gradient was observed for vitamin C.