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Olive oil, seed oils and other added fats in relation to ovarian cancer (Italy)

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Abstract

Objective: This study investigates the potential role of olive oil and other added fats used for seasoning or cooking on ovarian carcinogenesis. Methods: We analyzed data from a multicentre case–control study conducted between 1992 and 1999 in Italy, including a total of 1031 incident with a first diagnosis, histologically confirmed epithelial ovarian cancer cases and 2411 hospital controls with acute, non-malignant and non-gynecological conditions. The subjects' usual diet was investigated through a validated food-frequency questionnaire, including specific questions aimed at assessing added fat intake patterns. Results: After allowance for study centre, year at interview, age, education, parity, oral contraceptive use, and total energy intake, a reduced risk of ovarian cancer was observed for high intake of olive oil (odds ratio (OR) = 0.68, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.50–0.93 for the highest quintile of intake, compared to the lowest one) and for a group of specific seed oils (i.e. sunflower, maize, peanut, and soya) (OR = 0.59, 95% CI 0.46–0.76). No significant associations were observed for mixed seed oils, butter, and margarine. Conclusions: The present study suggests a favorable effect of olive oil and other vegetable oils on ovarian cancer in this Italian population.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche “Mario Negri”, Via Eritrea 62, Milan, Italy

    Cristina Bosetti, Eva Negri, Fabio Parazzini & Carlo La Vecchia

  2. Istituto Di Ricerche Framacologiche “Mario Negri”, Via Eritrea 62-20157, Milan, Italy

    Cristina Bosetti

  3. Field and Intervention Studies Unit, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon Cedex, France

    Silvia Franceschi

  4. Centro di Riferimento Oncologico, Aviano (Pordenone), Italy

    Renato Talamini

  5. Servizio di Epidemiologia, Istituto Tumori “Fondazione Pascale”, Naples, Italy

    Maurizio Montella

  6. Servizio di Epidemiologia e Oncogenesi, Istituto Regina Elena per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori, Rome, Italy

    Ettore Conti

  7. Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, University of Athens Medical School, Athens, Greece

    Pagona Lagiou

  8. Istituto di Statistica Medica e Biometria, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy

    Carlo La Vecchia

  9. Department of Epidemiology and Center for Cancer Prevention, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Carlo La Vecchia

Authors
  1. Cristina Bosetti
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  2. Eva Negri
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  3. Silvia Franceschi
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  4. Renato Talamini
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  5. Maurizio Montella
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  6. Ettore Conti
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  7. Pagona Lagiou
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  8. Fabio Parazzini
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  9. Carlo La Vecchia
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Bosetti, C., Negri, E., Franceschi, S. et al. Olive oil, seed oils and other added fats in relation to ovarian cancer (Italy). Cancer Causes Control 13, 465–470 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1015760004130

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1015760004130

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