Risk of differentiated thyroid cancer in the EPIC cohort

Dietary pattern analysis has gained particular interest because it reflects the complexity of dietary intake. A study explored the associations between a posteriori dietary patterns and the risk of differentiated thyroid cancer (TC) in Europe.
The investigation included 450,064 adults from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Dietary intake was assessed using validated country-specific dietary questionnaires.
After a mean follow-up time of 14 years, 712 first differentiated thyroid cancers were diagnosed. The results showed that a dietary pattern characterized by alcohol consumption (basically beer and wine) was negatively associated with differentiated thyroid cancer risk (HR= 0.75), while a dietary pattern rich in sweetened beverages was positively associated with differentiated thyroid cancer risk (HR = 1.26). The remaining 8 dietary patterns were not related to differentiated thyroid cancer risk.
The intake of sweetened beverages was positively associated with differentiated thyroid cancer risk, especially with papillary thyroid cancer risk. Similar results were observed with sugary and artificially sweetened beverages.
The investigation of dietary patterns detected that the consumption of sweetened beverages was associated with a higher risk of differentiated thyroid cancer and alcohol consumption was negatively associated with differentiated thyroid cancer risk (ie was protective). The results are in line with the general dietary recommendations of reducing the consumption of sweetened beverages.
Source: Zamora-Ros, R., Cayssials, V., Clèries, R. et al. Sweetened beverages are associated with a higher risk of differentiated thyroid cancer in the EPIC cohort: a dietary pattern approach. Eur J Nutr (2022).