Dietary cholesterol and lung cancer risk in a multiethnic population in Hawaii.

We interviewed 364 subjects with lung cancer and 627 age- and sex-matched controls among the multiethnic population of Hawaii. Quantitative estimates of dietary cholesterol and vitamin A intakes were obtained, as well as smoking and occupational histories. Using multiple logistic regression analysis to control for potential confounding variables, we found a monotonic positive dose-response relationship between dietary cholesterol and lung cancer risk in all subjects, in smoking subjects, and in men. In each of these groups, subjects in the highest quartile of dietary cholesterol were at significantly increased risk of lung cancer (lower 95% confidence limit greater than 1.0). Among females, however, no clear association of dietary cholesterol with lung cancer risk was apparent.