Pan-Fried Red Meat May Raise Risk of Prostate Cancer

Consuming red meats prepared at high temperatures, especially pan-fried red meats, may increase the risk of advanced prostate cancer in men by as much as 40%, according to a study by the University of Southern California (USC) and Cancer Prevention Institute of California (CPIC).

The study, which is available online in the journal Carcinogenesis, suggests potent chemical carcinogens formed when meats are cooked at high temperatures impact prostate cancer risk.

Researchers, led by Mariana Stern, associate professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, examined data from nearly 2000 men. Participants were part of the California Collaborative Prostate Cancer Study, a multiethnic case-control study conducted in the San Francisco Bay Area. A comprehensive questionnaire completed by participants evaluated the amount and type of meat intake, including poultry and processed red meat. Color photographs that displayed the level of doneness were used to gather information about cooking practices (eg, pan-frying, oven-broiling, and grilling). Of the men included in the study, more than 1000 were diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer.

“We found that men who ate more than 1.5 servings of pan-fried red meat per week increased their risk of advanced prostate cancer by 30 percent,” Stern said. “In addition, men who ate more than 2.5 servings of red meat cooked at high temperatures were 40% more likely to have advanced prostate cancer.”

Results showed hamburgers, but not steak, were associated with a greater risk of prostate cancer, especially among Hispanic men. “We speculate that these findings are a result of different levels of carcinogen accumulation found in hamburgers, given that they can attain higher internal and external temperatures faster than steak,” Stern added.

According to the study results, men with diets high in baked poultry had a lower risk of advanced prostate cancer. However, pan-fried poultry consumption was linked with increased risk. Stern noted that, regardless of meat type, pan-frying consistently amounted to an increased risk of prostate cancer.

Although researchers are not sure why pan-frying causes an increased risk for prostate cancer, they presume it is due to the formation of DNA-damaging carcinogens – heterocyclic amines (HCAs) – during the cooking of red meat and poultry. Other carcinogens, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), are produced during the grilling or smoking of meat. Strong experimental evidence exists that HCAs and PAHs contribute to certain cancers, including prostate cancer.

“The observations from this study alone are not enough to make any health recommendations, but given the few modifiable risk factors known for prostate cancer, the understanding of dietary factors and cooking methods are of high public health relevance,” said Stern.

Source: Keck School of Medicine of USC.