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prostate cancer

Elevated IGF-1 May Indicate Increased Risk of Early Breast Cancer – (01-08-01)

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Elevated IGF-1 May Indicate Increased Risk of Early Breast Cancer

Elevated IGF-1 has also been linked to prostate cancer. These findings continue to worry me with the use of human growth hormone (HGH) as an anti-aging “miracle.” Want to live longer? Cut your caloric intake by 30%, which has consistently and reproducible extended life spans in other mammals.

Int J Cancer 2000;88:828-832 Elevated serum levels of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) may identify women who are likely to develop breast cancer before age 50. In postmenopausal women, the authors found that the various blood tests were not predictive of breast cancer risk. However, in premenopausal women, increased levels of IGF-1 were associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. The odds ratio for breast cancer was 1.60 in the highest quartile of IGF-1 level compared with the lowest. After adjusting for IGFBP-3 levels, the risk of breast cancer was slightly reduced, the researchers note. “The results on IGF-1 represent a substantial achievement, given the nearly complete lack of biological markers at our disposal to conduct observational and intervention studies in pre-menopausal women, who represent more than one-fourth of all breast-cancer cases,” the researchers conclude.

Low-Fat, Flaxseed-Supplemented Diet and Prostate Cancer – (08-20-01)

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Low-Fat, Flaxseed-Supplemented Diet and Prostate Cancer

This is a very interesting article that looked at flaxseed as a potential adjunct for prostate cancer treatment in the future. Flaxseed may have several potential routes by which this occurs. First, compounds in flaxseed have been known to inhibit aromatase ,the enzyme that converts testosterone to estrogen in fat cells. Since altered estrogen metabolsim in males (yes, estrogen!) has been linked with prostatitis, I don’t see it as a far stretch to believe that altered estrogen breakdown could also lead to cancer (we already know this occurs in the breast). Second, flaxseed is high in lignans and has some phytoestrogenic effects. So it is possible that the lignans in flax are hogging up the estrogen receptor sites and not allowing more harmful estrogens from binding.

Urology 2001;58:47-52 A low-fat diet supplemented with flaxseed appears to reduce the growth of prostate cancer cells, according to the results of a small pilot study. Dr. Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, from Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, and colleagues studied 25 patients with prostate cancer who were about to undergo a prostatectomy. The patients were placed on a diet in which only 20% of total kilocalories came from fat. In addition, patients received 30 g/day of ground flaxseed, according to the report in the July issue of Urology. Over an average of 34 days, the subjects experienced a significant decrease in mean total testosterone, free androgen index and serum cholesterol. When the investigators looked at the prostates after prostatectomy, they found that prostate cancer cells were dividing much less rapidly and were self-destructing much more quickly in the treatment subjects compared with matched controls, Dr. Demark-Wahnefried said. The researchers are unsure which part of the diet produced this cancer-fighting effect. However, Dr. Demark-Wahnefried said that in cell-culture studies in which prostate cancer cells were exposed to the lignins from flaxseed, they found significant decreases in cell growth. “It looks like these lignins may be responsible for the results we saw,” she added. “If there is a synergistic effect [with] the low-fat diet portion of the diet, it is unknown at this time.

Reduction of exercise-induced asthma oxidative stress by lycopene – (12-07-00)

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Reduction of exercise-induced asthma oxidative stress by lycopene

Lycopene is an antioxidant found in red fruits such as tomatoes and watermelon. Lycopene is the substance in tomatoes that recent evidence suggests may protect against heart disease and prostate cancer. This study uses an extract containing high levels of lycopene. Remember that the whole food will contain numerous other substances that may very likely increase the effectiveness of the lycopene.

Synergy Abstract

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Sunlight and breast, ovarian, colon, prostate, non-melanoma skin cancer – (07-18-02)

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Sunlight and breast, ovarian, colon, prostate, non-melanoma skin cancer

We have such fears these days of sunlight exposure and have forgotten that sunlight is actually healthy for us (in moderation, of course). This article shows a protective effect of sunlight exposure on many types of cancer. Recently, much press was given here in AZ on the increasing rates of melanoma in children. So of course we heard from “experts” on how properly apply sunscreen and stay out of the sun. A few things to consider here. Do you think that kids today have less actual sun exposure now than 20 years ago? The push for sunscreen, kids staying indoors to play video games… I would bet total sunlight exposure is down and yet melanoma is up. How?? Gosh forbid we should consider a overall health and nutritional impact on melanoma. I would like to see further studies comparing overall sun exposure as well as looking into dietary considerations now versus 20 years ago.

Occup Environ Med — Abstracts: Freedman et al. 59 (4): 257

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Lycopene Helps Fight Infertility in Men – (04-16-01)

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Lycopene Helps Fight Infertility in Men

Given that lycopene (a substance found in many red fruits and veggies such as tomatoes and watermelon) has been shown to lower risk of prostate cancer, it is not surprising that this substance also has an effect on other male reproductive issues. Combine lycopene with zinc and therapies designed to restore hormone levels and many cases of infertility may be resolved.

(article) Lycopene, an antioxidant found in watermelon, grapes, tomatoes and some shellfish, seems to treat infertility in men, studies conducted at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi show. AIIMS researchers Dr. Rajeev Kumar and Dr. N. P. Gupta had 30 infertile male patients, ages 23 to 45, take 2 mg oral lycopene twice daily for 3 months. “Lycopene is one of the 650 carotenoids found in high concentrations in male testes and lower levels of lycopene are found in infertile males,” Dr. Gupta told Reuters Health. The duration of infertility in these men had ranged from 1.2 to 20 years, according to the researchers. In all cases, infertility was idiopathic. Twenty-seven patients had oligospermia, 26 had impaired sperm motility and 22 had abnormal sperm morphology. All three parameters were found in 14 patients, another 14 had two abnormal parameters and the remaining two patients had a single abnormality. After lycopene had been administered for 3 months, sperm concentration improved in 67% of the 30 patients. Maximum improvement was noted in patients with baseline sperm concentrations greater than 5 million/mL. Overall, 73% patients showed improved sperm motility and 63% showed improvement in sperm morphology. “We found that improvement in sperm concentration and motility was statistically significant,” Dr. Gupta said in the interview with Reuters Health. There were six pregnancies after the trial, he added. “Oral lycopene therapy does seem to have a positive role in the management of infertility of unknown causes,” Dr. Gupta concluded. “However, larger randomized controlled trials are essential before definitive therapeutic guidelines can be laid down.”

Eat Soy: Prevent Baldness and Prostate Cancer? – (08-30-02)

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Eat Soy: Prevent Baldness and Prostate Cancer?

A naturally occurring substance, DHT, or dihydrotestosterone, is a byproduct of the male hormone testosterone that helps control the development and functioning of the prostate gland; in most men, DHT is relatively harmless. However, some studies have shown that high levels of DHT can damage hair follicles, leading to male pattern baldness, or lead to an enlarged prostate or, in extreme cases, cancer of the prostate gland.

Researchers in the U.S. and China recently discovered that the answer to stopping DHT may be as easy as eating soy. The scientists conducted a pair of experiments in which two sets of rats were injected with “equol,” a molecule abundant in soybeans and other soy-based products. While the equol did not prevent DHT from being made, it “handcuffed” the hormone by binding to and deactivating it.

“Directly binding and inactivating DHT without influencing testosterone gives equol the ability to reduce many of the harmful effects of androgens [male hormones] without affecting the beneficial ones,” said the study’s lead researcher. Another one of the study authors added that the findings “are of immense clinical importance.”

Additional information about the benefits of sound nutrition can be found at http://www.chiroweb.com/find/archives/nutrition.

Reference: Lund TD, Munson DJ, Haldy ME, et al. Equol is a novel anti-androgen that inhibits prostate growth and hormone feedback. Biology of Reproduction 2004;70:1188-1195.

 

Energy Imbalance and Prostate Cancer – (11-14-02)

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Energy Imbalance and Prostate Cancer

This is an interesting concept with prostate cancer, and does seem to fit with other observations. This review article found associations with excess (above expenditure) caloric intake and risk of prostate cancer as well as with more advanced cases of prostate cancer. This fits with a few other concepts. First, caloric restriction w/o nutrient restriction has consistently shown life span extension in mammals, and cancer risk reduction across the board may very well be a factor in the longevity. Second, IGF-1, a hormone that has been related to risk of prostate cancer, is increased via insulin and insulin levels would generally increase with higher caloric intakes. You could add a low caloric diet to treatment for prostate cancer.

Nutrition.org — Abstracts: Platz 132 (11): 3471S –

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Tomato Products, Lycopene, and Prostate Cancer Risk – (03-25-02)

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Tomato Products, Lycopene, and Prostate Cancer Risk

I currently have a patient with metastatic prostate cancer to pelvic and hip bones. I’m working with his oncologist to clean up his lifestyle and improve his overall health. We have just started him on a program of lycopene supplements in an attempt to alter progression of the disease. I felt that the evidence was strong enough to support this approach.

Cancer Spectrum: Giovannucci et al, pp. 391-398

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