Could Coffee Lower the Risk of Head and Neck Cancers?

Your morning cup of joe may do more than just wake you up—it could help protect against certain cancers. A new analysis led by Huntsman Cancer Institute researchers found that drinking more than four cups of caffeinated coffee daily was associated with lower odds of developing head and neck cancers when compared to non-coffee drinkers.

The study, which pooled data from 14 international research groups examining over 25,000 participants, discovered that heavy coffee drinkers had 17 percent lower odds of head and neck cancer overall, with even stronger protection against specific types like oral cavity cancer (30 percent lower risk) and throat cancer (22 percent lower risk).

Even decaf lovers saw benefits, with decaffeinated coffee linked to 25 percent lower odds of oral cavity cancer. Tea showed mixed results—while light tea drinking (one cup or less daily) was associated with lower overall risk, drinking more than one cup was linked to higher odds of laryngeal cancer.

“Coffee and tea habits are fairly complex, and these findings support the need for more data and further studies around the impact that coffee and tea can have on reducing cancer risk,” says Yuan-Chin Amy Lee, Huntsman Cancer Institute investigator and adjunct associate professor in the U’s Department of Family and Preventive Medicine in the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine.

The research comes at a critical time, as head and neck cancers—currently the seventh most common cancers worldwide—are on the rise in low- and middle-income countries.