There are many different methods for cooking meat and a study has found that some of these methods may lead to an increased risk of kidney cancer due to the cancer-causing chemicals formed during the process.
Marji McCullough, PhD, a nutritional epidemiologist with the American Cancer Society, said, “The link between consumption of meat and cancer, particularly colorectal cancer, has been found to be consistent.”
Also, these links may be customized by inherent receptiveness to kidney cancer. Diet and genetics may be interrelated, and may be able to influence cancer risk, states the study published in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, reports natureworldreport.com.
The Unites States and other developed nations in healthcare are experiencing an increased incidence of kidney cancer. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common form of kidney cancer in adults. Factors related to a western lifestyle, which includes diet that is high in meats, processed foods, and starches, may be resulting in an increased risk of cancer.
Dr. Xifeng Wu from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and his team in Houston, analyzed dietary intake and genetic risk factors. The data was taken from 659 patients, who were diagnosed with RCC and 699 adults who were healthy.
It was seen that the consumption of red and white meat was found more commonly among kidney cancer patients when compared with people who did not have kidney cancer. Further, researchers noticed that consumption of cancer-causing chemicals that form when meat is cooked on high flames or temperatures like barbecuing and pan frying was higher among kidney cancer sufferers. Researchers also found that some people were more vulnerable to certain cancer causing agents due to certain genetic variants.
Wu said, “Our study provides additional evidence for the role of red and white meat in kidney cancer. Cooking meat on high temperatures results in the formation of carcinogens. These can be termed the real culprits.”
This is the first study to assess the effect of RCC susceptibility variants. The variants were recognized based on genome-wide association studies.
The study results suggest that encouraging a reduction in the consumption of meat, especially when cooked at high temperatures or over an open flame, may decrease the risk of developing RCC.
