(ii) Discuss whether meat consumption causes colon cancer in Sweden and Hungary.
Although there is considerable evidence that high consumption of red meat may increase the risk of colorectal cancer, data by subsite within the colon are sparse. The objective of our study was to prospectively examine whether the association of red meat consumption with cancer risk varies by subsite within the large bowel. We analyzed data from the Swedish Mammography Cohort of 61,433 women aged 40-75 years and free from diagnosed cancer at baseline in 1987-1990. Diet was assessed at baseline using a self-administered food-frequency questionnaire. Over a mean follow-up of 13.9 years, we identified 234 proximal colon cancers, 155 distal colon cancers and 230 rectal cancers.
