The research team led by Professor Cho Jong-gwan at the East-West Cancer Center of Daejeon University Seoul Korean Medicine Hospital reported that it identified an association between coffee consumption and long-term prognosis in colorectal cancer patients through a meta-analysis that comprehensively analyzed four prospective observational studies involving 5,442 colorectal cancer patients. The study was published online in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, the official international journal of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

According to the results, colorectal cancer patients who consumed coffee had higher overall survival and tended to have a lower risk of disease progression and recurrence compared with patients who did not drink coffee. A dose-dependent relationship was observed in which prognosis improved as daily coffee intake increased. For each additional cup of coffee consumed per day, the risk of death and recurrence tended to decrease by approximately 4%, and intake of three cups per day was associated with a reduction of about 12%. In the stage-specific analysis, the effect of coffee consumption was seen in patients with stage III colorectal cancer. Among stage III patients, coffee intake was associated with a reduction in mortality risk of more than approximately 40%.

In this study, regular coffee and decaffeinated coffee were analyzed separately, and both types showed associations with improved survival and reduced risk of recurrence. The research team stated that this suggests the effects of coffee are not due to caffeine alone, but are likely influenced by the combined action of various bioactive compounds contained in coffee.

Professor Cho explained, “This study is one of the meta-analyses that comprehensively examined the relationship between coffee consumption and prognosis in colorectal cancer patients according to dose, cancer stage, and coffee type,” adding, “It provides evidence that can be used as a reference for long-term survival management and lifestyle guidance in colorectal cancer patients.”

This study was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea and was conducted jointly by Professor Son Chang-gyu and Resident Kim Jun-yeol. The researchers stated, “Further studies are needed to establish a causal relationship between coffee consumption and prognosis in colorectal cancer patients.”

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