Yogurt intake may reduce risk of bladder cancer

Consumption of milk and other dairy products does not increase the risk of bladder cancer, according to a recent study. However, yogurt intake appears to be associated with a reduced risk.

Overall, total ‘other’ dairy product consumption did not correlate with bladder cancer risk (hazard ratio [HR] comparing highest with lowest tertile, 0.97, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.87–1.07; p-trend=0.52). Similarly, there was no association seen for either liquid milk, processed milk, cream, cheese or ice cream.

On the other hand, an inverse association was seen between yogurt consumption and bladder cancer risk when comparing those in the moderate (25–85 g/day; multivariate HR, 0.85, 95 percent CI, 0.75–0.96) and high categories (>85 g/day; multivariate HR, 0.88, 95 percent CI, 0.78–0.98) with nonconsumers.

Due to the inconsistent association between milk and other dairy product intake and bladder cancer reported in previous articles, the investigators examined possible links with bladder cancer risk for total and individual dairy products by bringing together the world’s data on the topic.

In total, 13 cohort studies included in the Bladder Cancer Epidemiology and Nutritional Determinants study were identified, providing data for 3,590 bladder cancer cases and 593,637 noncases. Cox proportional hazard regression analyses, stratified by study centre and adjusted for potential confounders, were conducted to investigate the possible associations of milk and other dairy product intake with the risk of bladder cancer.