The aims of this study are to assess the association between black tea consumption and breast cancer risk, as well as between black tea consumption and the risk of developing premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer in a population of migrant Polish women residing in Cook County, IL, and in Detroit, MI. This thesis is a secondary analysis of data from the Polish Women’s Health Study (PWHS), a population-based, case-control study, of Polish-born women who immigrated to the United States. The analytic sample consists of 129 incident breast cancer cases and 303 population-based matched controls. Intake of black tea was assessed through an in-person food frequency questionnaire. Multivariable conditional logistic regression models were performed to estimate the association between black tea consumption and case status, and separate analyses were performed based on menopausal status. Relative to women consuming <1 cup of black tea/day, those reporting drinking 1-2 and 2-3 cups/day have an increased risk of developing breast cancer (OR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.00-3.39 and OR = 2.33, 95% CI = 1.07-5.06, respectively). No association is observed for those consuming ≥3 cups/day. Analyses by menopausal status show similar patterns of association between black tea consumption and breast cancer risk for premenopausal women (OR = 2.81, 95% CI = 0.97-8.12 and OR = 3.47, 95% CI = 1.07-11.28 for 1-2 and for 2-3 cups/day consumers relative to <1 cup/day, and no association is observed for those consuming ≥3 cups/day). For postmenopausal women, the pattern is similar but does not reach statistical significance. This exploration into the PWHS dataset suggests that black tea consumption is positively associated with breast cancer risk, and specifically so for women who consume 1-3 cups/day.
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