Fruits, freshwater fish may be protective against breast cancer in Asians

Women who consume high amounts of fruit and freshwater fish appear to have a lower risk of developing breast cancer, according to a Vietnamese cohort study.

The study used data from the Vietnamese Breast Cancer Study (VBCS) to examine the associations of fruit, vegetable, meat, and fish consumption with the risk of breast cancer overall and by molecular subtype.

The analysis included 476 breast cancer patients and 454 age-matched no-cancer women (controls). They completed a validated food frequency questionnaire to provide data on their dietary habits over the past 5 years. Researchers applied logistic regression models, with adjustments for age, education, income, family history of cancer, menopausal status, body mass index, exercise, total energy intake, and other potential dietary confounders.

Compared with the lowest tertile, the second and third tertiles of fruit intake showed an inverse association with breast cancer risk (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.67, 95 percent confidence intervals [CI], 0.47–0.95 and aOR, 0.41, 95 percent CI, 0.27–0.61, respectively; p_trend<0.001). This association was more pronounced for triple-negative than other subtypes (p_{heterogeneity}<0.001).

Likewise, higher intake of freshwater fish showed a protective association with breast cancer risk overall (tertile 3 vs 1: aOR, 0.63, 95 percent CI, 0.42–0.95; p_trend=0.03). There was an inverse association seen between HER2-enriched subtype and red and organ meat intake (tertile 3 vs 1: aOR, 0.40, 95 percent CI, 0.17–0.93; p_trend=0.04; p_{heterogeneity}=0.50).