Is there an association between alcohol intake or smoking and small bowel adenocarcinoma? Results from a European multi-center case-control study.

Objective: To discover whether tobacco smoking and intake of different types of alcoholic drinks are associated with small bowel adenocarcinoma (SBA).

Methods: A population-based European multi-center case-control study was conducted from 1995 to 1997.

Results: After a histological review using uniform diagnostic criteria, 47 (33%) of the 142 identified cases of SBA were excluded due to reclassification as either tumors of the papilla of Vater (n = 22), stromal tumors, or metastases; 95 cases were accepted for study. In all, 70 cases of SBA together with 2070 controls matched by age, sex, and region were interviewed. A high intake (more than 24 g alcohol per day) of beer or spirits was associated with SBA, an odds ratio (OR) of 3.5 and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of 1.5-8.0 and 3.4 (95% CI 1.3-9.2), respectively). There was no association with wine intake or total alcohol intake. Tobacco smoking was probably unrelated to SBA.

Conclusions: A high intake of beer or spirits seems to be a risk factor for SBA. Since this association was not seen for wine drinkers, protective components of wine may counterbalance a carcinogenic effect of alcohol on the small bowel. Alternatively, the result may be confounded by other factors, e.g. dietary factors.