Alcohol linked to increased risk of breast cancer in African-Americans

May 1 (UPI) -- Researchers at the University of North Carolina report that alcohol consumption was associated with an increased risk of breast cancer in African-American women in a recent study.

The study consisted of 22,338 women from the African-American Breast Cancer Epidemiology and Risk Consortium, or AMBER, of four large epidemiologic studies of breast cancer. Participants completed questionnaires on their alcohol intake.

"Alcohol is an important modifiable exposure, whereas many other risk factors are not," Melissa A. Troester, a professor of epidemiology and director of the Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility in the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina, said in a press release. "Women who are concerned about their risk of breast cancer could consider reducing levels of exposure."

Researchers found that women who drank seven or more drinks per week showed an increased risk of almost all subtypes of breast cancer.

The study found that women who drank 14 or more alcoholic beverages per week were 33 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than women who had four or fewer drinks a week. These findings were similar to women of European descent.

The study revealed that overall African-American women drink less alcohol than white women, with 45 percent of African-American women qualified as "never drinkers" -- but the "never drinkers" were more likely to develop breast cancer compared to light drinkers, though the researchers are unsure of why. Prior studies showed comorbidities like diabetes, which may prevent them from drinking alcohol.

The study was published in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention.