There are some studies showing a link between red meat consumption and cancer (34).
However, all of these studies are so-called observational studies,
While it is true that processed meat strongly correlates with increased cancer risk, the same is NOT true for unprocessed red meat.
In so-called meta-analyses, which are studies that analyze the data from many studies at the same time, the link between red meat and cancer is found to be very weak (35).
These studies only find a very small increase in risk for men, and zero increase for women (36).
That being said, it is possible that the way meat is cooked can have an effect, because carcinogens can form when meat is cooked excessively (37).
For this reason, it is important to use gentler cooking methods and cut away all burnt or charred pieces.
Bottom Line: The association between unprocessed red meat and cancer has been vastly exaggerated, but overcooking meat may have adverse effects.