Red meat and processed meat intake and risk for cutaneous melanoma in white women and men: Two prospective cohort studies

Background Red and processed meat consumption has been associated with increased risk for several cancers, but the association with cutaneous melanoma risk has been inconclusive. Objective To investigate the association between red and processed meat intake and melanoma risk. Methods Dietary information was assessed by using food frequency questionnaires in 2 prospective cohorts: 75,263 women from the Nurses' Health Study (1984-2010) and 48,523 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (1986-2010). Melanoma cases were confirmed by reviewing pathology records. Pooled multivariable hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated by using Cox proportional hazards models. Results A total of 679 female and 639 male melanoma cases were documented during follow-up. Red and processed meat intake was inversely associated with melanoma risk ( P  = .002 for trend); the pooled hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals) of the 2 cohorts were 1.00 (reference), 1.00 (0.87-1.14), 0.98 (0.86-1.13), 0.89 (0.77-1.02), and 0.81 (0.70-0.95) for increasing quintiles of intake. Limitations Findings might have limited generalizability, considering that the cohorts were limited to white health professionals. Conclusion Red and processed meat intake was inversely associated with melanoma risk in these 2 cohorts.