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Objective: Several studies have shown an inverse relation between vegetable and fruit intake and pancreatic cancer, but no specific beneficial component of such foods has been consistently identified. We considered the role of 15 selected vitamins and carotenoids and 6 minerals on pancreatic cancer risk in an Italian case–control study.

Methods: Subjects were 326 patients with incident pancreatic cancer and 652 controls, admitted to the same hospitals as cases for acute conditions. Micronutrient computation was based on a validated and reproducible food-frequency questionnaire. We estimated the odds ratios (OR) and confidence intervals (CI) using conditional logistic regression models, adjusted for various confounding factors and for energy intake, according to the residual model.

Results: Comparing the highest to the lowest quintile of intake, the OR were 0.60 (95% CI 0.36–0.98) for vitamin E, 0.44 (95% CI 0.27–0.73) for vitamin C, 0.56 (95% CI 0.34–0.93) for folate, and 0.57 (95% CI 0.35–0.92) for potassium. No significant inverse associations were observed for α-carotene (OR = 0.69, 95% CI 0.43–1.12), β-carotene (OR = 0.64, 95% CI 0.39–1.06), and β-cryptoxanthin (OR = 0.66, 95% CI 0.39–1.09). No relation was found for other micronutrients considered.

Conclusion: Our findings support a favorable role of vitamins E and C, selected carotenoids, and folate on pancreatic carcinogenesis.