Diet and cancer. Interesting idea

el perro said...
I've also recently added broccoli sprouts to my diet, since Johns Hopkins reports they have 20-50 times as much of the anti-cancer compound in mature broccoli. www.hopkinsmedicine.org/press/1997/SEPT/970903.HTM
Hopkins has a patented variety called BroccoSprouts, but I've been growing my own (takes about 3 days).

Johns Hopkins, eh? They are well respected in this field. Thanks for posting the links!

Hey Purg....I respect your knowledge as you've been there / done that but the pepper thing. While I cannot imagine for one minute HOW the pepper thing impacts cancer cells neither can I dispute what Imus is claiming. What do you suppose is happening to his cancerous prostate since his PSA is dropping?

No MD here but I wouldn't be too quick too assume that Imus' lower PSA equals cancer cells dying off. It might simply be that the cancer cells are not dividing and growing as quickly so they're not generating as much PSA. I imagine his cancerous prostate is still cancerous.

Jeff: I love aspargus, but it will even reek through my catheters and the bags, so I rarely eat it any more, which is a shame.

Casey: having a reasonable expectation to the dietary changes makes perfect sense, and a balanced way of looking at it.

Jim: my weaknesss is good European dark chocolate, or chocolate with marzipan German style. Also love Austrian, Italian, and French Chocolate too.

I think this pepper thing is fascinating, really.  If anyone has any doubts, I'll post this link again and encourage you to click it: 

http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/full/66/6/3222 

"Capsaicin, a Component of Red Peppers, Inhibits the Growth of Androgen-Independent, p53 Mutant Prostate Cancer Cells". 

I actually tried taking pepper capsules before my surgery for a few weeks, with the approval of my primary care doctor and with no objections from my urologist, but it upset my stomach.  Again, I wanted to stack the odds in my favor, and even considered AS with diet and pepper capsules.  But ultimately, with a Gleason 3+4, I decided I wasn't a candidate for this and opted for surgery.  Still, there is very little doubt in my mind that diet and lifestyle changes can greatly affect the course of existing cancer as well as reduce the odds of recurrence post-treatment.

A quote from Wikipedia on the subject of Capsaicin:

" A non-peer-reviewed study using county population and mortality data showed significantly higher rates for stomach and liver cancer in counties inhabited by groups with high consumption of capsaicin-rich foods than in matched control counties.[48] Carcinogenic, cocarcinogenic, anticarcinogenic, antitumorigenic, tumor promotion, and anti-tumor promotion effects of capsaicin have been reported in animal studies.[42]"

A minor example of what my radiation oncologist said in relation to studies, how one report will completely contradict another, even though both reports are from sound sources, and from good doctors and researchers.

Personally, I think those that fail to acknowledge and move forward with the solid (and growing) body of evidence which exists surrounding the claim that natural ingredients can prolong prostate vitality, and slow or stop PC cells from further developing, have got their head in the sand...

It's baffling to think about what people will subject themselves to (surgery, radiation, chemical/hormone treatment) to stop or slow their cancer growth while not undertaking the less radical steps that are within their direct control and are known to slow cancer growth and prolong life...like diet, nutrition, exercise, etc.   Take positive steps that are within your control to help improve your odds of success!

But, to each their own.  Time to move on to another topic, before I start repeating myself...

BB, I completely respect your opinion, and your right to that opinion. We each have to walk our journey in our unique ways. Generally speaking, with most vitamins and supplements, as my own doctors say, probably not going to help the cancer, but certainly not going to hurt you to take them, so its up to each person to do what they think is best from themselves. I don't have any problem with that attitude.

Well Hello there!
I love the consequencies of the transatlantic time difference, so that all these exchanges have been going on while I'm out of it.
Strange thread, to which my first response is the word BALANCE

Might I suggest that we all get a bit of balance in the way we investigate and respond to PCa.

And have a balanced lifestyle and diet. Consider for a moment the possibility that a lot of pepper might be too much pepper and might for instance have a positive effect on Prostate cancer, but a negative effect on stomach cancer.
Smoking can actually have a positive effect on a few lung disorders while at the same time gives you lung cancer.
Red wine is good for you but alcohol is bad for you.
Water is good for you, but a woman in California died from drinking too much water in 2007.
And on a personal not a guy I once worked with had had to be air-lifted to hospital from a North Sea Oil rig with Vitamin C poisoning after drinking too much orange juice (it was very hot weather and no alcohol/beer allowed).

So is it worth changing. How can we tell?

I'm quite interested as I feel that my cancer turned up in the first place and came back after surgery despite my healthy diet etc (healthy that is apart from being yet another chocolate fan). Now does my situation mean that diet had no effect on my cancer or might it actually mean that I'm a guy who was disposed to get cancer anyway and that without the healthy diet the cancer would have shown up when I was 38 instead of when I was 48. So does it now mean that if I carry on eating healthily the cancer will still get me but will take 10 years to do so rather than 5. (Though I am of course hoping for a lot more.)

Diet can't cure cancer because nothing can, all treatments can only try to control it. And some patients' cancers will be kept under control, by what ever means, for 40 years so that they die of something else. But some will be really hard to control, for whatever reasons, and they will indeed be what get's you.

Someone asked about a healthy bread. I/we eat a wholemeal bread known as an Allinson, see:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Allinson
and
www.allinsonflour.co.uk/
From what I've read about it, it may not be available outside Europe.

Just try and live healthily.

Alfred

Hey MichGuy that "pepper" link was interesting. Reads like the compound won't eliminate prostate and other cancers but does stunt the progression of the disease.

-this has certainly been a heated debate - since we all see facts and figures from our own point of view and life experiences -

-another interesting element of diet and cancer is what to take and NOT to take during treatment -

-I discovered this during my read-through of the PRINCESS MARGARET HOSPITAL pdf file - "Challenging Prostate Cancer"
www.prostatecentre.ca/


"With radiation therapy use, the implications for nutrition can be
profound. Since most nutritional supplements beneficial to men with
prostate cancer are antioxidants, they may — in theory — block the
action of radiation, thus limiting the chance of a cure."

-there have been other studies done in the states as well - did a quick google of that topic and found fascinating links.

-I am enjoying my new "anti-cancer" diet - it may or may not lower my PSA when it comes up for analysis in October - I feel healthier ( mentally and physically) with my weight loss ( 20 lbs.) and choices of food for meals and snack. I feel like I am doing something.

-I chatted with a customer at the garden centre work yesterday ( the city chopped down his 105 year old maple tree because he complained about a dead limb) who wanted a good size tree to replace it ( not a twig ! ) since he had bone cancer -12 year cancer survivor - and after I complimented him of being a long term survivor - his answer back was, " a lot of it is your positive attitude on life - you have to fight and want to succeed."

hugs to one and all
BRONSON
..............

Well, if nothing else, this thread has got people thinking about ways to take back some of the control in their lives. And Tudpock, try Soy milk-it's great in cereal and coffee. And Bronson, as usual your upbeat attitude put a smile on my face and congradulations on the 20lb. weight loss!

Renee

Alfred - your key word of BALANCE is right on target in my opinion. This thread has gotten a lot of attention, responses, and quite a variety of opinions, as it should on a subject like this. I don't think its a case of being right or being wrong. Lot of studies show a lot of diversity on the subject. Each of us has to decide for himself what changes and aspects he will do in his own journey. I happen to think that is a good thing.

I realize that I said on Thursday that it was time to shut this thread down and move on but I kept recalling the outstanding, compelling, and inspirational real-life experiences people shared here, so I broke my own rule and went back to open-up the thread again.   I pulled together the “best of the thread” — a Top Ten list of your comments.     ray123 said... … I am a complete believer in the changing of a diet. about a month ago my dad had a PSA of 49. …he ate horribly. The day we found out he started drinking a gallon of green tea a day and water. He has totally cut out sugars and carbs from his diet. He eats lots of salads, some chicken and streak, lots of broccoli, lots of vegetables, no sodas, and some garlic. In addition to lots of supplements and exercising, my dad, a month later is down to a 9! He just started his HT therapy about 3 days ago, so even without treatment, he has cut it off by about 80%. Awesome.     montee said... I am a big believer in diet having an affect on PSA .  I recently saw a rad. oncologist at Emory because of up and down psa readings from >0.04 to 0.07 and back down to >0.04 then 0.05.  He told me to keep what I was doing diet wise and add a couple tablespoons of tomato paste (lyc opene).  Would see me in couple mos. to see what psa was doing, then if it gets to .1 then get zapped.   I eat virtually no red meat, no dairy, soy milk (sure do miss my Bryers), pomergranate daily…      daveshan said... New guy here but I gotta say I'm sold on the diet thing. My wife's stepmother battled bone cancer (met' from breast) for years and went far beyond any of her Dr's expectations. One of her tools was a variation of the Mediterranean diet, the other was a kick butt outlook on life. Looking back on my PSA rise, it went from 2.5 to 5.5 in ~17 months then over the next 20 months it only went up to 6.5, I don't know if things like that are normal but by an odd coincidence I decided to change my diet a bit, less red meat, eat more fruits/veggies and exercise in the spring of '08. My decision was based on prevention of future heart disease as I had no idea my PSA was rising but I can't help but think it may have slowed the progression of my disease.     Lots of good ideas, recipes and enthusiasm were shared… Jim is sick said... … AS is not about doing nothing… … I'm ignorant of many dietary facts and was honestly looking for others input and advise…     MichGuy said... …  I've certainly modified my diet post-PCa.  I practically eliminated all dairy (except small amount of milk in coffee); I never ate red meat so that was not an issue; I drink 8 oz of pomegranate juice daily, I take 2000 IU of Vitamin D3 daily and I take 2000 mg of a high quality fish oil capsule (Nordic Naturals, recommended by Dr. Snuffy Myers in one of his videos).  I've added walnuts and almonds to my diet.  I also lost about 15 pounds to bring my body mass index to the correct point.  … I feel that it can't hurt to help stack the odds of recurrence in your favor.      rhb47 said... … I think we all have to find what works for us-for my husband and myself it's no red meat, fat free dairy, fish, lots of fruits and veggies-we eat small amounts of hormone, anti-biotic free chicken breast once in a while….And, there is nothing wrong with a little chocolate !     Sephie said... … I also wanted to mention add lots of veges, especially kale and broccoli - these are "super" veges loaded with good stuff. If you're not one for "plain" veges, try sauteing in a little olive oil and garlic …   Drums said... …Here's a variation of a power shake my wife and I have been drinking for breakfast. It's helped to keep away the mid-morning munchies. The amounts are approximate: blend together - 2/3 cup frozen blueberries, 2 scoops of soy protein, 2 tbsp ground flax, banana, 1oz of orange juice, 8 oz of pomegranate juice.   I’m going to try this shake…it sounds good.  I even offered-up my own grilled veggies recipe:     Casey59 said... … have you tried grilled veggies on the Weber?  Excellent with grilled salmon over a bed of lettuce with a little Cous Cous.  Chop up yellow squash, zucchini, red onion, mushrooms, asparagus, and red, yellow and green peppers, marinate overnight in olive oil with some seasoning and then grill.  Get one of the veggie grilling pans.     BB_Fan said... My Weber is going to run all summer long. However it will see a lot of chicken and fish, and unfortunately, probably not even one rack of ribs. I do have a great recipe for pulled chicken/turkey breast if anyone is interested.   BB_Fan:   please post your pulled chicken/turkey breast recipe—I’d like to try it.   I have one that I call “Eastern North Carolina BBQ Chicken.”   Its “eastern” NC because it uses no tomato-based sauce, which the original settlers in that area thought was the devil’s food.   It uses red pepper and vinegar as a sauce instead, and is also a "pulled" style of preparation.     tatt2man said... …I am enjoying my new "anti-cancer" diet…       Keep up the positive enthusiasm and energy about wanting to continue to fight your PC, reduce your chances of recurrence by stacking the odds in your favor, and prolong life...!   best wishes... Post Edited (Casey59) : 5/29/2010 11:12:53 AM (GMT-6)