Overview
- At the American Association for Cancer Research meeting, USC investigators presented an observational analysis of 187 patients diagnosed by age 50 that found young non-smokers with lung cancer reported healthier diets than average using the USDA Healthy Eating Index.
- Patients averaged a Healthy Eating Index score of 65 versus the U.S. adult average of 57 and reported more daily servings of fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
- The team proposes pesticide residues on conventionally grown produce as a possible factor, but they only estimated exposure from published food-category residue data and did not measure pesticides in patients.
- The next step is direct biomonitoring, with plans to test blood or urine for pesticide metabolites to evaluate whether any specific chemicals track with risk.
- Women made up most of the cohort and some female subgroups reported higher-than-average past use of oral contraceptives, while independent experts called the findings preliminary and urged people not to change their diets based on this study.