Diet Influences Cancer

Prostate cancer is a leading cause of death among men in the United States. University of California/Los Angeles (UCLA; California, USA) researchers have previously found that a low-fat diet with fish oil supplements eaten for four to six weeks prior to prostate removal slowed the growth of cancer cells in human prostate cancer tissue compared to a traditional, high-fat Western diet. Led by William Aronson, that study  also found that the men on the low-fat fish oil diet were able to change the composition of their cell membranes in both the healthy cells and the cancer cells in the prostate. They had increased levels of omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil and decreased levels of the more pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids from corn oil in the cell membranes, which may directly affect the biology of the cells.  The present study reports that men with prostate cancer who ate a low-fat diet and took fish oil supplements have lower levels of pro-inflammatory substances in their blood and a lower cell cycle progression (CCP) score, which may help prevent prostate cancers from becoming more aggressive.