Sugar Sweetened and Artificially Sweetened Beverage Consumption and Pancreatic Cancer: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

Pancreatic cancer (PanCa) is a highly fatal malignancy with few modifiable risk and prognostic factors. This study investigates the association between cola, diet cola, and non-cola soft drink consumption and PanCa risk and mortality. A retrospective study was conducted using data from the Patient Epidemiology Data System (1982–1998) at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center (Buffalo, NY, USA), including 213 PanCa patients and 852 cancer-free controls. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire, including a 46-item food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of cola, diet cola, and non-cola soft drink consumption and PanCa risk. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% CIs of cola, diet cola, and non-cola soft drink consumption and PanCa mortality. Stratified analyses were conducted by sex, body mass index (BMI), and smoking status. We observed significant 55% increased odds of PanCa among patients consuming ≥1 regular cola per day (OR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.01–2.39). We also observed non-significant 38% increased hazard of mortality among patients consuming ≥1 regular cola per day (HR: 1.38, 95% CI: 0.91–2.07). We conclude that regular cola consumption is a modifiable lifestyle that may be associated with PanCa risk and mortality following diagnosis.

Keywords

• pancreatic cancer
• sugar sweetened beverages
• artificially sweetened beverages
• diet
• lifestyle factors
• risk