High-fiber, low-calorie diet appears to make a difference in breast
cancer recurrence risk
By Shawn Le, Source: City of Hope, Duarte, CA March 31, 2009
Source:
John Pierce, Ph.D., at UCSD is principal investigator of the WHEL
Study Group, which also includes researchers from Stanford
University, University of Arizona, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center,
University of California, San Diego, University of California,
Davis, and Kaiser Permanente facilities. The paper appeared in the
Jan. 20 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Hot flashes might be the bane of menopause — but for women
undergoing breast cancer treatment, they actually may hint that
their therapy is working. What can a breast cancer patient do,
though, if she stays free of the sudden sweats?
New findings from a dietary intervention study show that eating
plenty of fruits, vegetables and fiber might help boost survival for
these women.
Joanne Mortimer, M.D., vice chair of the Department of Medical
Oncology & Therapeutics Research, was senior author on the recent
Journal of Clinical Oncology study called “Influence of High
Vegetable, Fruit and Fiber Dietary Pattern on Breast Cancer
Prognosis by Initial Hot Flash Reporting: The Women’s Healthy Eating
and Living (WHEL) Trial.” The study was led by University of
California, San Diego (UCSD) researchers.
As Mortimer explained, research has shown that women with early
stage breast cancer who experience hot flashes during treatment have
lower rates of breast cancer recurrences or new breast cancers than
those who do not experience hot flashes.
“Hot flashes seem to provide evidence that the hormonal therapy used
to deprive cancer cells of their estrogen is effective,” Mortimer
said. “This study shows that hot flashes are associated with a
better outcome in women on a regular diet. In women who did not
experience hot flashes, eating a high-fiber, low-calorie diet
resulted in the same decrease in risk as women who experienced hot
flashes.”
Between 1995 and 2000, the WHEL study followed more than 3,000 women
who had survived early stage breast cancer to examine whether diet
could influence risk of cancer recurrence.
One group of women received information on the diet recommended by
the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which includes
five fruits and vegetables a day. The second group received
telephone counseling on the same basic diet, but with more fruits
and vegetables and less fat.
The original study revealed that diet made no overall difference in
risk of breast cancer recurrence in either group. Mortimer wondered,
though, if WHEL study data might reveal any links among diet, hot
flashes and breast cancer risk.
About 30 percent of the original participants on the WHEL study
reported experiencing no hot flashes when they enrolled. Of that 30
percent, 453 women were in the basic USDA diet group and 447 were in
the counseling and special “intervention” diet group. The research
team found that those on the intervention diet had a significantly
lower risk of developing a recurrence of breast cancer or a new
tumor: cancer reappeared in 16 percent of them, lower than the
nearly 24 percent in the USDA diet group. Women who had been through
menopause had an even greater reduction in risk.
Researchers believe eating fruits, vegetables and fiber may reduce
circulating estrogen levels in the body. A lack of hot flashes is
associated with higher estrogen levels, and most breast cancers
depend on estrogen to grow.
“We have often used side effects of chemotherapy to determine if the
correct dose of a drug is being given, and side effects of some
drugs help predict the effectiveness of the treatment,” said
Mortimer. “While we have not used side effects from hormonal therapy
to predict for benefit, this study suggests that more research
should be conducted to understand how hot flashes are associated
with different treatment options.”
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The Top 5 Things Every Woman Should Know about Breast Cancer
