London: Women taking a couple of alcoholic pegs a day may be reducing their chances of survival in case they develop breast cancer, a new study has found.
The study, conducted by researchers from the National Cancer Institute in Milan, suggests women, who drank as little as two small glasses of wine on a daily basis were more likely to die from the disease if they later developed it than those who drank less, Daily Mail reported Monday.
While earlier studies have shown alcohol consumption increases the risk of contracting breast cancer, this study is believed to be the first to show that it also raises the risk of a woman dying from it once she has breast cancer.
The study was conducted on 264 women who were diagnosed with breast cancer between 1987 and 2001.
These women had also participated in lifestyle studies that collected information on their alcohol consumption before diagnosis.
They were divided up as whether they drank nothing at all, 'moderate' amounts of up to 13 grams of alcohol a day, or 'high' amounts of 13 grams plus.
A typical 125ml glass of wine contains between eight and 12 grams of alcohol while a pint of strong lager contains nearly 24 grams.
Researchers then matched up the results with data showing how many women had died in the 10 years after being diagnosed with the disease, using this information to calculate relative survival rates.
Among non-drinkers, the relative survival rate was 88 percent, and 89 percent for moderate drinkers.
But the rate for women, who drank 13 grams or more everyday, was 65 percent - meaning they were significantly less likely to survive in the ten years after diagnosis.
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