Drinking 3 cups of coffee a day reduces liver cancer risk by over 50pc

A new study has revealed that coffee consumption can reduce the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which is the most common type of liver cancer, by about 40 percent.

The research also indicated that three cups of coffee per day reduces liver cancer risk by more than 50 percent.

Carlo La Vecchia, MD, study author from the department of epidemiology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri," and department of clinical sciences and community health, Universita degli Studi di Milan, Italy, said that the favourable effect of coffee on liver cancer might be mediated by coffee's proven prevention of diabetes, a known risk factor for the disease, or for its beneficial effects on cirrhosis and liver enzymes.

Researchers performed a meta-analysis of articles published from 1996 through September 2012, ultimately studying 16 high-quality studies and a total of 3,153 cases.

La Vecchia said that it remains unclear whether coffee drinking has an additional role in liver cancer prevention, but, in any case, such a role would be limited as compared to what is achievable through the current measures.

The study is published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.