A high-fibre diet may halt the progression of prostate cancer according to a study published in the January 2013 issue of the journal Cancer Prevention Research, available Jan. 10 explains why.
In Asian cultures, despite a similar rate of prostate cancer occurrence, the rate of disease progression is far less. Researchers have been looking for a genetic cause for this discrepancy for a long time, however, the answer may instead be dietary. The study was performed using mice and a single isolated component of a high-fibre diet, inositol hexaphosphate or IP-6, however, the results have the potential to be expanded into the clinical treatment of humans with early stage prostate cancer. Researchers from the University of Colorado Cancer Centre compared mice fed with of inositol hexaphosphate (IP6), a major component of high-fiber diets, to control mice that were not. Then the study used MRI to monitor the progression of prostate cancer in these models. "The study's results were really rather profound. We saw dramatically reduced tumor volumes, primarily due to the anti-angiogenic effects of IP6," says Komal Raina, PhD, research instructor at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and lead author of the paper. Inositol hexaphosphate prevented the tumors from growing new blood vessels, necessary for http://tinyurl.com/z7aw8sc providing cancer tumors with the vast amounts of energy they require to continue growing, as well as slowing down the rate at which they metabolised glucose, another essential mechanism for increasing in size. With these limitations, the tumors were unable to continue growing. Possible mechanisms for the effect of IP6 against metabolism include a reduction in a protein called GLUT-4, which is instrumental in transporting glucose. "Researchers have long been looking for genetic variations between Asian and Western peoples that could explain the difference in prostate cancer progression rates, but now it seems as if the difference may not be genetic but dietary. Asian cultures get IP6 whereas Western cultures generally do not," Raina says. This is bad news for investment guru Warren Buffett who last year completed a course of radiation therapy for prostate cancer and is known to enjoy copious amounts of fast food and sugary sodas. Currently, large doses of chemotherapy are required when treating certain forms of cancer, resulting in toxic side effects. The chemicals enter the body and work to destroy or shrink the tumor, but also harm vital organs and drastically affect bodily functions. Currently, doctors treat prostate cancer by injecting hundreds of radioactive 'seeds' into the prostate. However, that treatment is not effective when treating an aggressive form of prostate cancer, said Cathy Cutler, research professor at the MU Research Reactor. The good news for people suffering from prostate cancer is that everyone can easily increase the amount of fibre in their diet by eating more fresh vegetables, fruit and wholegrains. Inositol hexaphosphate is also commonly available as a nutritional supplement in health food stores and online. Some other cancer research advances are much less accessible to the general public, like the 2012 study that found that gold nanoparticles and tea extract destroy prostate cancer tumors. Prostate cancer is very common in men over fifty years of age, with it being the sixth-leading cause of cancer-related death, worldwide. It is more common in developed countries, though rates in the developing world are increasing. Many cases of prostate cancer never present with any symptoms, are never diagnosed or treated and do not contribute to the death of the man hosting it. Only a third of men who have prostate cancer will develop symptoms. A multinational study found that, of men who died of other causes, 30 percent of men in their fifties and 80 percent of men in their seventies had prostate cancer. The symptoms of prostate cancer are very similar to those of benign prostatic hyperplasia and include: frequent urination nocturia (increased urination during the night) difficulty starting and maintaining a steady stream of urine haematuria (blood in the urine) dysuria (painful urination) difficulty achieving an erection painful ejaculation The main risk factors for developing prostate cancer are advancing age, obesity and a family history of the disease. To read more articles by Anne Seccombe click on the links for Health, PCOS, Nutrition, Low Carbohydrate Lifestyles or Green Living. To receive an email with future articles by Anne, click on the Subscribe button below, or follow on Twitter or Facebook. You can also find more information on PCOS at My PCOS Info. Sources: Raina K, Ravichandran K, Rajamanickam S, Huber KM, Serkova NJ, & Agarwal R. (2013)Inositol Hexaphosphate Inhibits Tumor Growth, Vascularity, and Metabolism in TRAMP Mice: A Multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Study. Cancer prevention research (Philadelphia, Pa.), 6(1), 40-50. PMID: 23213071 http://www.coloradocancerblogs.org/high-fiber-diet-prevents-prostate-can...
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