Increased tocopherol intake associated with lower lung cancer risk

August 06, 2008

Increased tocopherol intake associated with lower lung cancer risk
A report published in the September 1, 2008 issue of the International Journal of Cancer described a study conducted by researchers at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center which evaluated the effect of alpha, beta, gamma and delta tocopherols on lung cancer risk. Until recently, alpha-tocopherol was the only vitamin E fraction recognized by nutritional science; however, the lesser known fractions have increasingly been the subject of scientific research.

The current study compared 1,088 lung cancer patients with 1,414 age and smoking status-matched healthy controls. Dietary questionnaire responses concerning the year prior to cancer diagnosis or study enrollment were used to calculate individual tocopherol intake.

While participants diagnosed with lung cancer had a lower body mass index and were more likely to have a history of emphysema than the control group, the control population was likelier to be better educated and use multivitamin/mineral supplements. Increased intake of alpha, beta and gamma-tocopherols was found to be associated with a reduced risk of lung cancer. When those whose alpha-tocopherol intake levels were among the highest 25 percent of all subjects' intakes were compared with those whose intake was in the lowest 25 percent, a 61 percent reduction in lung cancer risk was observed. For both beta-tocopherol and gamma-tocopherol, subjects whose intake was highest experienced a 44 percent lower risk compared to the lowest intake groups, however, this association that was reduced in a secondary model adjusted for intake of the other tocopherols and vitamin C. No significant association was observed between delta-tocopherol and lung cancer risk.

To the authors knowledge, the investigation is the first to compare intakes of the different tocopherols and lung cancer risk. They suggest further research concerning the various forms of vitamin E and cancer risk.