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Marine n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in adipose tissue and breast cancer risk: a case–cohort study from Denmark

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Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the content of marine n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in adipose tissue, a biomarker for the long-term intake of seafood, and the subsequent development of breast cancer (BC).

Design

We designed a case–cohort study based on a cohort of healthy Danish women, who in the 1990s donated adipose tissue biopsies to a biobank in order to investigate the role of diet for the development of cancer and chronic disease. During follow-up, incident cases of BC were identified through national registries, and the content of n-3 PUFA in adipose tissue was compared between cases and the cohort sample.

Results

During follow-up, 463 new cases of BC were identified. After adjusting for potential confounders, no significant association between the content of marine n-3 PUFA and BC was found. When comparing the highest with the lowest quintile, the hazard ratio (HR) was 0.96 (95% CI 0.64–1.43) for total marine n-3 PUFA, 0.84 (95% CI 0.58–1.23) for eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and 1.08 (95% CI 0.73–1.58) for docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Conclusion

This study does not indicate any association between the content of total or individual marine n-3 PUFA in adipose tissue and development of BC.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by grants from The Danish Cancer Society.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oncology, Aalborg Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital, Hobrovej 18-22, 9100, Aalborg, Denmark

    Petra M. Witt

  2. Department of Nephrology, Center for Cardiovascular Research, Aalborg Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark

    Jeppe H. Christensen

  3. Department of Cardiology, Center for Cardiovascular Research, Aalborg Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark

    Erik B. Schmidt & Claus Dethlefsen

  4. Danish Cancer Society, Institute of Cancer Epidemiology, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Anne Tjønneland

  5. Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Center for Cardiovascular Research, Aalborg Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark

    Kim Overvad

  6. Department of Oncology, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark

    Marianne Ewertz

  7. Institute of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark

    Marianne Ewertz

Authors
  1. Petra M. Witt
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  2. Jeppe H. Christensen
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  3. Erik B. Schmidt
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Correspondence to Petra M. Witt.

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Witt, P.M., Christensen, J.H., Schmidt, E.B. et al. Marine n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in adipose tissue and breast cancer risk: a case–cohort study from Denmark. Cancer Causes Control 20, 1715–1721 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-009-9423-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-009-9423-y

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