Prostate cancer progresses less quickly and presents less risk of recurrence in men who follow a vegetarian diet.
- 9 out of 10 prostate cancers are adenocarcinomas.
- In France, prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men.
Fruits and vegetables are good for your health, and particularly interesting if you suffer from prostate cancer it seems. A new study from the University of California shows that patients following a vegetarian diet have a risk of progression and recurrence halved compared to those who eat meat.
Prostate cancer: a vegetarian diet reduces the risk of recurrence
To verify the link between the development of prostate cancer and diet, researcher Vivian Liu’s team followed 2,038 men diagnosed with the disease and registered on CaPSURE, the American national cancer registry. of the prostate. Among other things, they completed a questionnaire on their nutritional habits concerning 140 foods and drinks. During the median study period of 7.4 years, 204 progression events were recorded.
Analyzes of questionnaires and medical records showed that vegetarian participants had a 52% lower risk of tumor progression than those who ate little fruit and vegetables.
The first group’s risk of recurrence was also 53% lower. This pattern was consistent regardless of the participant’s age, walking speed, diagnostic assessment, or cancer stage at the time of discovery.
Prostate cancer: bet on fruits and vegetables to reduce the risks
This work will be presented at the symposium on genito-urinary cancers which is being held from February 16 to 18 in San Francisco.
“We hope this result will guide those at risk towards better and healthier diets”explained lead author Vivian N. Liu, senior coordinator of clinical trials at the Osher Center. “We already know that a diet that includes vegetables, fruits, beans and whole grains has a lot to do with many health benefits, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and reducing overall mortality. We can add the benefits of reducing prostate cancer progression to the list”added the expert.