Background. Some observational studies have suggested that excess dietary intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic acid increases cutaneous melanoma risk. We aimed at examining the association between serum fatty acids and melanoma risk by conducting a population-based case-control study in a northern Italy community. Methods. The percentage composition of 12 fatty acids was determined in 51 newly diagnosed melanoma patients and 51 age- and sex-matched population controls by extracting total lipids from serum samples using thin layer and gas chromatography. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the relative risk of melanoma associated with tertiles of percentage composition of each fatty acid as well as groupings including saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Results. We found a slightly increased melanoma risk for stearic and arachidic acids proportion, with and without adjustment for potential confounders. For an n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, docosapentaenoic acid, we found a male-specific direct association with melanoma risk. No other associations emerged for the other saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids, individually or grouped by type. Conclusions. These findings do not suggest a major role of fatty acids, including linoleic acid, on risk of cutaneous melanoma, though their evaluation is limited by the small sample size. 1. Introduction A steady increase of melanoma incidence rates has been observed in recent decades in many countries [1–3]. A report from England on trends in cancer occurrence in 1991–2000 ranks melanoma incidence as the most rapidly increasing among all site-specific neoplasms, and early detection due to screening does not appear to be the only explanation of the growing incidence of the disease [4]. This points to a role of environmental risk factors in increasing melanoma incidence, but the exact nature of these factors, apart from ultraviolet exposure, is still unclear [5]. In particular diet, a potentially modifiable risk factor, has long been suspected to play a role in melanoma occurrence, though the results of epidemiologic investigations carried out so far have yielded inconsistent results [6–13]. High intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), and of linoleic acid in particular, have been linked to increased melanoma risk [6, 10, 14]. In contrast, high intake of fat [15] and of fish rich in n-3 fatty acids [12, 16] has been associated with reduced risk of the disease. Laboratory studies have reported toxic effects of fatty acids such as
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