Dietary nitrosyl-heme from processed meats and its association with colorectal cancer risk: findings from the EPIC cohort study

Background Processed meat (PM) consumption is an established risk factor for colorectal cancer (CRC). It has been hypothesized that nitrosyl-heme, formed by the addition of nitrites during meat processing, may enhance the carcinogenic effects of PMs. This study aims to investigate the association be...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Rizzolo-Brime, Lucía, Lujan-Barroso, Leila, Farran-Codina, Andreu, Bou, Ricard, Nicolas, Genevieve, Huybrechts, Inge, Lasheras, Cristina, Molina Montes, Esther, Colorado-Yohar, Sandra, Gasque, Alba, Dahm, Christina C., Bock, Niels, Olsen, Anja, Tjønneland, Anne, Katzke, Verena, le Cornet, Charlotte, Schulze, Matthias B., Saieva, Calogero, Sieri, Sabina, De Magistris, Maria Santucci, Tumino, Rosario, Macciotta, Alessandra, Wareham, Nick, Weiderpass, Elisabete, Chatziioannou, Chrysovalantou, Vineis, Paolo, Jakszyn, Paula
Format: article
Publication Date:2025
Country:España
Institution:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repository:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:20.500.12327/5093
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12327/5093
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12937-025-01266-7
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:663/664
Description
Summary:Background Processed meat (PM) consumption is an established risk factor for colorectal cancer (CRC). It has been hypothesized that nitrosyl-heme, formed by the addition of nitrites during meat processing, may enhance the carcinogenic effects of PMs. This study aims to investigate the association between nitrosyl-heme intake and CRC risk within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition(EPIC) study. Methods This prospective study included 367,463 participants(70.3% women) from seven countries from the EPIC-study. Dietary data were collected via baseline questionnaires, and nitrosyl-heme exposure was estimated using biochemical data from 52 Spanish PMs, extrapolated to country-specific items. Sex-specific multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios(HRs) and 95% confidence intervals(CIs) were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models. Results Over a 15-year median follow-up, 5,115 incident CRC cases were identified. Comparing the highest vs. the lowest sex-specific tertile of nitrosyl-heme intake we found no significant association with CRC risk (HRT3vsT1:1.01;95%CI:0.93–1.09). Subgroup analyses by tumor subtype and interactions with lifestyle factors also showed no associations. Conclusions This study offers insights into nitrosyl-heme exposure in European populations but found no link to CRC risk. Further research is needed to understand nitrosyl-heme's role in CRC.

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