Beef linked to colon cancer: Nobel winner

The head of the German Research Centre,however,said his search for cancer data in India has revealed that its incidence is higher in Kerala where beef consumption is high.

South American countries like Argentina,Uruguay,the United States,Australia and Europe,where red meat is favoured,witness a high incidence of this form of cancer,he said. He cited the post-World War data for Japan and Korea,where incidence of colon rectal cancer began rising with huge imports of beef and a consequent change in the national diet.

“There is a high rate of colon rectal cancer in countries with high red meat consumption. Yet,in countries where white meat,specifically smoked chicken,grilled fish,is eaten more,there is no increased risk though the carcinogens produced is more or less the same,’’ Prof Hausen said.

Prof Hausen said colon rectal cancer may be caused by undiscovered heat-resistant carcinogens (cancer causing substances) present in beef products.

“There may be undiscovered carcinogens,which are thermo-resistant,present predominantly in beef. Some polyomaviruses are known to survive temperatures up to 80 degrees centigrade for 30 minutes’’ leading to their survival in partially cooked meat,he said.

Red meat consumption could also be linked to breast cancer and lung cancer in the West,he said. The reasons for the high incidence of breast cancer in India,despite low consumption of red meat,could be linked to dairy products,he said. “We may have to look at dairy products in India for a link to breast cancer incidence.”

In the case of cervical cancer,whose incidence is also high in India,Prof Hausen said administering vaccines against the pappillomavirus to men and not just women alone could help restrict its spread and help in its eradication.