Question

use the table to answer the following question.
table 2. alcohol consumption and risk of invasive breast cancer by alcohol intake
abbreviations: par, percent attributable risk; rr, relative risk
interpret tf lative risk and 95% confidence interval for statistical significance comparing those consuming >30 g/d of alcohol intake) to non - drinkers(the non - drinkers have a 0 for intake in the table).
use the editor to format your answer

Explanation:

The relative risk (RR) of \(1.51\) for alcohol intake \(\geq30\ g/d\) compared to non - drinkers (\(0\ g/d\)) indicates that those consuming \(\geq30\ g/d\) of alcohol have a \(51\%\) higher risk of invasive breast cancer. The \(95\%\) confidence interval (\(1.35 - 1.70\)) does not include \(1\). Since \(1\) is the reference value (for non - drinkers), this means the result is statistically significant. A confidence interval that does not contain \(1\) implies that the observed relative risk is unlikely to be due to chance.

Answer:

The relative risk of \(1.51\) (with a \(95\%\) confidence interval of \(1.35 - 1.70\)) for alcohol intake \(\geq30\ g/d\) compared to non - drinkers shows that heavy drinkers (\(\geq30\ g/d\)) have a \(51\%\) higher risk of invasive breast cancer. The fact that the \(95\%\) confidence interval does not include \(1\) indicates statistical significance, meaning the increased risk is unlikely to be due to random variation.