EAT-Lancet Diet Pattern, Genetic Predisposition, Inflammatory Biomarkers, and Risk of Lung Cancer Incidence and Mortality

Scope

The association between a planetary and sustainable EAT-Lancet diet and lung cancer remains inconclusive, with limited exploration of the role of genetic susceptibility and inflammation.

Methods and results

The study includes 175 214 cancer-free participants in the UK Biobank. Fourteen food components are collected from a 24-h dietary recall questionnaire. A polygenic risk score is constructed through capturing the overall risk variants for lung cancer. Sixteen inflammatory biomarkers are assayed in blood samples. Participants with the highest EAT-Lancet diet scores (≥12) have a lower risk of lung cancer incidence (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.64, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.51–0.80) and mortality (HR = 0.65, 95% CI: 0.48–0.88), compared to those with the lowest EAT-Lancet diet scores (≤8). Interestingly, there is a significantly protective trend against both lung adenocarcinoma and lung squamous cell carcinoma with higher EAT-Lancet diet scores. Despite no significant interactions, a risk reduction trend for lung cancer is observed with increasing EAT-Lancet diet scores and decreasing genetic risk. Ten inflammatory biomarkers partially mediate the association between the EAT-Lancet diet and lung cancer risk.

Conclusion

The study depicts a lower risk of lung cancer conferred by the EAT-Lancet diet associated with lower inflammation levels among individuals with diverse genetic predispositions.