Abstract

Observational epidemiology and experimentation by randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have been used to evaluate dietary factors in cancer prevention; however, consistency in findings has been elusive. In several circles, RCTs are viewed as more credible than observational studies. As the testing of dietary epidemiological findings in RCTs has been more common for colorectal cancer than for other cancers, we use experience with this malignancy to critically appraise the reasons for discrepancies between results of observational and experimental studies.

Author affiliations

1. Arizona Cancer Center, 1515 North Campbell Avenue, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85724, USA.
2. Mel and Enid Zuckerman Arizona College of Public Health, 1295 North Martin Avenue, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85724, USA.
3. Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Elm & Carlton Streets, Buffalo, New York 14263, USA.
4. Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, 665 Huntington Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
5. Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 181 Longwood Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.

Correspondence to: María Elena Martínez^1,2 Email: emartinez@azcc.arizona.edu

Published online 7 August 2008

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