Caffeine Linked To Lower Skin Cancer Risk

THE_WELL_HUNG_OYSTER writes "The curative effects of coffee continue to be discovered as the Harvard School of Public Health and Boston's Brigham & Women's Hospital published a new study today that links caffeine consumption with reduced skin cancer rates. Quoting: 'The study of nearly 113,000 men and women found those who drank three or more cups of coffee a day had a 20 percent lower risk of basal cell carcinoma than those who said no to Joe. Caffeine in non-coffee substances was found equally effective. The cause is speculated to be related to caffeine's ability to "kill off damaged skin cells," said Dr. Josh Zeichner, assistant professor of dermatology at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. "If you get rid of these cells that are damaged, then they don't have the opportunity to grow and form cancers."'"

Re:Lots of coffee or caffeine = always indoors?

[ackthpt]

One more benefit of caffeine: it drives you away from hazards like fresh air and sun!

Sugar and caffeine will get you through anything.

An associative hypothesis with a weak result

[dbet]

Be careful of studies that link things with minor changes from the control group, even ones with large populations. 20% lower than an already low risk is pretty much nothing. Just as an example, smokers have a 2000% higher risk of lung cancer than non-smokers. Whites have a 400% higher chance of melanoma than blacks.

The only time you can take small changes seriously is when there are multiple sources and a proposed mechanism that is consistent with our previous understanding. "May help kill damaged cells" might be 100% correct, but it's not a mechanism, it's just the hypothesized result.

These kinds of studies are interesting but don't make too much out of them.

Basal Cell Carcinoma? Big deal...

[tpjunkie]

Basal cell carcinomas are very slow growing, very, very rarely invasive, and almost hardly metastasize. They're gross, unsightly and unpleasant, but not really a killer. If this were melanoma on the other hand, that'd be a big deal.