Is there any link between Drinking Coffee and Cancer?

Studies have also suggested coffee consumption is linked to a lower risk for some cancers, including endometrial, aggressive prostate, estrogen-negative breast cancer, liver cancer, and a common form of skin cancer, but not others (eg esophageal).

In 2011, researchers working with data from the Nurses' Health Study published findings that showed coffee drinkers who consumed more than four cups a day had a 25% lower risk of developing endometrial cancer.

Senior researcher Edward Giovannucci, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, said coffee is starting to emerge as a protective agent in cancers that are linked to obesity, estrogen and insulin.

He and his colleagues suggest antioxidant and anti-inflammatory substances in coffee may be responsible for anti-cancer activity. Giovannucci said lab tests show coffee has more antioxidants than most fruits and vegetables.

Giovannucci was also co-author of another 2011 study that found men who regularly drink coffee appear to have a lower risk of developing an aggressive, lethal form of prostate cancer. They also found the lower risk was the same for caffeinated as for decaffeinated coffee.