A new study reported in Cancer Prevention Research concluded that men who ate a low-fat diet with fish oil supplements from 4 to 6 weeks before having their prostate removed had slower cancer-cell growth in their prostate tissue than men who ate the typical high-fat Western diet. The cell membrane of both healthy and cancer cells in men on the low-fat diet with fish oil supplements also showed changes in that there were higher levels of omega-3-fatty acids from fish oil and lower levels omega-6-fatty acids from corn oil. Researchers also found that blood from patients using the low-fat supplemented by fish oil diet slowed the growth of prostate cancer cells in a test tube whereas blood from those on the typical diet did not. The researcher said “The findings that the low-fat, fish oil diet reduced the number of rapidly growing cells in the prostate cancer tissue is important because the rate at which the cells are dividing can be predictive of future cancer progression. The lower the rate of proliferation, the lesser the chances that the cancer will spread outside the prostate, where it is much harder to treat.”
The study included 48 men followed over 6 weeks. Men in the low-fat fish oil supplemented diet group were provided food to assure that they followed a low-fat diet supplemented with fish oil The diet provided 15 percent of the calories from fat and was supplemented with 5 grams of fish oil daily. The typical diet provides 40 percent of the calories from fat and usually has high levels of omega-6 fatty acids from corn oil and low levels of fish oil that provides omega-3 fatty acids and that have been found to reduce the incidence of heart disease and to fight inflammation that has been associated with certain types of cancer.
The researchers warn against generalizing from this study because of the small numbers and short period of study. Another study in planned that will include 100 men with prostate cancer who have elected to wait and see without any treatment but will receive biopsies and check-ups. The study will randomly divide men into two groups-the low fat fish oil supplemental diet and the typical western diet and follow them for 1 year to evaluate the effect of diet on prostate cancer cell proliferation.
