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Breast Cancer and Fish

December 10th, 2010

Many streams, rivers and lakes already bear warning signs that the fish caught within them may contain dangerously high levels of mercury, which can cause brain damage. But, according to a new study, these fish may also be carrying enough chemicals that mimic the female hormone estrogen to cause breast cancer cells to grow.

“Fish are really a sentinel, just like canaries in the coal mine 100 years ago,” says Conrad Volz, co-director of exposure assessment at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute’s Center for Environmental Ecology. “We need to pay attention to chemicals that are estrogenic in nature, because they find their way back into the water we all use.”

Volz and colleagues, including biochemist Patricia Eagon, took samples from 21 catfish and six white bass donated by local anglers as part of a study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research meeting in Los Angeles this week. The fish were caught in five places: a relatively unpolluted site 36 miles upstream from Pittsburgh on the Allegheny River; an industrial site on the Monongahela River; an Allegheny site downstream from several industries that release toxic chemicals; and the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, where Pittsburgh dumps much of its treated sewage and sewer outflows. “This is the largest concentration of combined sewer outflows in the U.S.,” Volz notes, about the confluence, known as the Point. The researchers also bought several fish at the store as controls.

Using an organic solvent, the researchers created an extract from the skin, flesh and fat of the various fish. They then bathed a breast cancer cell line — known as MCF-7 — in the extract. “We used this cell line because it has estrogen receptors in it, meaning that if estrogens are present it causes this cell line to proliferate,” Volz explains. “If you put something on it and it grows, then it must be stimulating the estrogen receptor.” In addition to responding to pure estrogen applied as a positive control, the extract from two of the white bass and five of the catfish caused the breast cancer cells to thrive.

The highest response came from fish caught in the industrial section of the Monongahela River. “The Monongahela River area is the area in Pittsburgh that was the site of most of the steel production over the last 100 years,” Volz says. “That area is still an industrial beehive.” But the broadest response came from where the sewer outflows and sewage treatment plants flow into the rivers from Pittsburgh; three of the four catfish caught here caused the breast cancer cells to proliferate. “Sewage might be more responsible for putting estrogenic chemicals in the water than the industries alone,” Volz adds. “All of the hormone replacement products that women use go down the drain, along with birth control pills, antibacterial soaps, and many of the plastics we use, like Bisphenol A, have such effects.”

It remains unclear exactly what estrogen-mimicking chemicals were actually present in the fish and what kind of cancer-causing role they might have. But their effects on the fish themselves were clear: the gender of nine of the fish could not be determined. “Increased estrogenic active substances in the water are changing males so that they are indistinguishable from females,” Volz says. “There are eggs in male gonads as well as males are secreting a yolk sac protein. Males aren’t supposed to be making egg stuff.”

And this estrogen burden is widespread. The store-bought white bass caused breast cancer cells to grow like its river-caught counterparts (as well as containing higher levels of mercury, arsenic and other contaminants) after being trucked to Pittsburgh from Lake Erie. “These fish, again, were in waters that were seeing industrial waste as well as possible combined sewer outflows,” Volz notes. “This isn’t just happening in Pittsburgh, this is happening everywhere in the industrialized world.”

Volz says he and his fellow researchers are launching a broader survey this summer that will entail sampling fish all along the Allegheny River. Efforts will be made to determine if it is industrial waste, sewage or agricultural runoff — or all three — that is responsible for the problem. In the meantime, cooking the fat out of fish may be the best defense. “If you broil fish and let the fats drip out that will take most of the contaminants out,” Volz says, though that may not be enough given other exposures to potentially tainted water. “What our study does show us is that there is exposure potential to vast populations that use water from our rivers as their drinking water supply.”

Coffee drinking may cut liver cancer risk – meta-analysis

November 9th, 2010

From FoodNavigator.com Regular and high coffee drinking may reduce the risk of liver cancer by 55 per cent, says a new meta-analysis of observational studies.The study, published in this month’s Hepatology, pooled data from six case-control and four cohort studies and found that an increase of one cup of coffee every day was associated with a 23 per cent reduction across all the studies.

The study, published in this month’s , pooled data from six case-control and four cohort studies and found that an increase of one cup of

every day was associated with a 23 per cent reduction across all the studies.“Moreover, the apparent favorable effect of coffee drinking was found both in studies from southern Europe, where coffee is widely consumed, and from Japan, where coffee consumption is less frequent, and in subjects with chronic liver diseases,” wrote lead author Francesca Bravi from the Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri in Milan.

Liver cancer is the sixth most commonly diagnosed cancer in the world, and third most common cause of death from cancer, according to Cancer Research UK. Despite these figures, the cancer remains relatively rare, with 18,500 new cases in the US every year, and about 3,000 in the UK.

The highest incidences of the disease are in east and Southeast Asia, particularly China, and for this reason the current researchers looked at the effects of probiotic supplements on markers for the disease.

The new study included 2,260 liver cancer cases (hepatocellular carcinoma – HCC) from studies based in Southern Europe and Japan. The researchers found drinkers of coffee were associated with a 46 per cent lower risk of HCC from case-control studies, and a 36 per cent lower risk from cohort studies.

In addition, the authors calculated that moderate coffee drinking was associated with a 30 per cent lower risk, while heavy coffee drinking was associated with a 55 per cent lower risk.

“The consistency of an inverse relation between coffee drinking and HCC across study design and geographic areas weighs against a major role of bias or confounding,” stated the researchers.

Bravi and co-workers point out that animal and laboratory studies have indicated that certain compounds found in coffee may act as blocking agents by reacting with enzymes involved in carcinogenic detoxification. Moreover, other components, including caffeine, have been shown to have favorable effects on liver enzymes.

“Despite the consistency of these results, it is difficult to derive a causal inference on the basis of the observational studies alone,” they added.

“The results from this meta-analysis provide quantitative evidence of an inverse relation between coffee drinking and liver cancer,” concluded the authors. “The interpretation of this association remains, however, unclear and the consequent inference on causality and worldwide public health implications is still open for discussion.”The beverage, and its constituent ingredients, has come under increasing study with research linking it to reduced risk of diabetes, and improved liver health.The beverage, and its constituent ingredients, has come under increasing study with research linking it to reduced risk of , and improved liver health.Coffee, one of the world’s largest traded commodities produced in more than 60 countries and generating more than $70bn in retail sales a year, continues to spawn research and interest, and has been linked to reduced risks of certain diseases, especially of the liver and diabetes.

The beverage, and its constituent ingredients, has come under increasing study with research linking it to reduced risk of , and improved liver health.Coffee, one of the world’s largest traded commodities produced in more than 60 countries and generating more than $70bn in retail sales a year, continues to spawn research and interest, and has been linked to reduced risks of certain diseases, especially of the liver and diabetes.

No evidence that antioxidant supplements interfere with therapeutic effects of chemotherapy agents

October 12th, 2010

From News-Medical.net

There is no evidence that antioxidant supplements interfere with the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy agents, according to a recent systematic review of the use of antioxidants during chemotherapy.

In fact, they may help increase survival rates, tumor response, and the patient’s ability to tolerate treatment. This conclusion has important implications for patients whose oncologists discourage the use of antioxidant supplements during treatment. Until now, their concern has been that these supplements may counteract the tumor-shrinking abilities of the chemotherapy.

“This review demonstrates that there is no scientific support for the blanket objection to using antioxidants during chemotherapy. In addition, it also appears that these supplements may help mitigate the side effects of chemotherapy,” said Keith I. Block, MD, lead author of the study and Medical Director of the Block Center for Integrative Cancer Treatment. “This is significant because it increases the likelihood that patients will be able to complete their treatment.”

Co-author Dr. Robert Newman, Professor of Cancer Medicine at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center said, “This study, along with the evolving understanding of antioxidant-chemotherapy interactions, suggests that the previously held beliefs about interference do not pertain to clinical treatment.”

The analysis, titled “Impact of Antioxidant Supplementation on Chemotherapeutic Efficacy: A Systematic Review of the Evidence from Randomized Controlled Trials,” evaluated 845 articles from five scientific databases that examined the effects of taking natural antioxidant supplements concurrent with chemotherapy.

Out of the 845 studies that were analyzed, 19 met all evaluation criteria. These included the use of randomized trials with a control group, and the reporting of treatment response (tumor shrinkage) and survival data. The 1,554 patients represented had a variety of cancer types, and most had advanced or relapsed disease. Some of the antioxidants used in the trials included glutathione, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, ellagic acid, selenium and beta carotene.

Among the findings:

All of the studies that included survival data showed similar or better survival rates for the antioxidant group than the control group.

None of the trials supported the theory that antioxidant supplements diminish the effectiveness of chemotherapy treatments.

All but one of the studies that reported treatment response showed similar or better response in the antioxidant group than in the control group.

15 of 17 trials that assessed chemotherapy toxicities, including diarrhea, weight loss, nerve damage and low blood counts, concluded that the antioxidant group suffered similar or lower rates of these side effects than the control group.

The authors noted that reducing side effects may help patients avoid having to cut back on their chemotherapy dosing, interrupt scheduled treatments, or abandon treatment altogether. This in turn, is likely to favorably impact treatment outcomes. A recent study of a group of colon cancer patients indicated that those who completed their full prescribed schedules of chemotherapy had survival rates nearly double those of patients who abandoned their chemotherapy treatment prematurely.

This new study encourages further exploration of the potential importance of antioxidant supplements as a means of improving cancer survival.

The full study is currently available on line at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03057372.

http://intl.elsevierhealth.com/journals/ctrv/

Vitamin D Lowers Cancer Risk

October 11th, 2010

From Chicago Tribune

Building hope for one pill to prevent many cancers, vitamin D cut the risk of several types of cancer by 60 percent overall for older women in the most rigorous study yet.The new research strengthens the case made by some specialists that vitamin D may be a powerful cancer preventive and most people should get more of it. Experts remain split, though, on how much to take.

The findings … are a breakthrough of great medical and public health importance,” declared Cedric Garland, a prominent vitamin D researcher at the University of California-San Diego. “No other method to prevent cancer has been identified that has such a powerful impact.”While the most reliable yet, the study does have drawbacks. It was designed mainly to monitor how calcium and vitamin D improve bone health, and the number of cancer cases overall was small, showing up in just 50 patients.

“It’s a very small study,” said Dr. Edward Giovannucci, who researches nutrition and cancer at the Harvard School of Public Health. “I don’t think it’s the last word.”

In either case, the study takes an important step in extending several decades of research that began with observations that cancer rates among similar groups of people were lower in southern latitudes than in northern ones. Scientists reasoned that had to do with more direct sunlight in southern regions.

The skin makes vitamin D when exposed to sunlight’s ultraviolet rays. This study used that same form of the vitamin, known as D3 or cholecalciferol. Multivitamins usually carry a much weaker variant known as D2, but D3 is available in stand-alone dietary supplements.

Earlier research has shown that vitamin D helps regulate cell growth, a fundamental biological process that goes haywire in cancer. Most other supplements have tended to target specific types of disease in early testing, like selenium or vitamin E for prostate cancer.

This study, published Friday in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, is the first time that researchers significantly boosted — and measured — blood levels of vitamin D and then followed identical groups of patients from start to finish.

That’s why, despite its modest size, the research was generating excitement. Nearly all other work has compared disparate groups of patients.

The researchers at Creighton University in Omaha focused on 1,179 seemingly healthy women with an average age of 67. The women were divided into three groups: 446 got calcium and vitamin D3 supplements, a similar number got calcium alone, and 288 took dummy pills.

The research team gave 1,000 daily international units of vitamin D, more than current guidelines calling for 200 to 600 units depending on a person’s age.

The researchers intended to check mainly for the effects of calcium on bone health. Their interest in cancer risk was secondary.

But the lower cancer risk stood out. Only 13 women, or 3 percent, developed cancer over four years of calcium and vitamin D supplements. With calcium alone, 17 women, or 4 percent, got cancer. With dummy pills, cancer appeared in 20 women, or 7 percent.

That shows a 60 percent lower cancer risk over four years in the group taking both supplements, compared to patients taking placebos. And when the first-year cancers were excluded — the ones mostly likely present before the study began — the findings were stronger still: a 77 percent lower risk for the combo group.

While the calcium-only group lowered its four-year cancer risk by 47 percent compared to the untreated group, it did no better when early cancers were excluded. That suggests calcium alone may have done little in this experiment, the researchers said.

Experts reviewing the study focused on vitamin D as the powerful agent in the combo group, but it can’t be ruled out that calcium might somehow amplify the effect of vitamin D.

While numbers were limited, these women developed a broad range of cancers, including disease of the breast, colon, lungs and blood. Dr. Michael Holick, of Boston University Medical Center, who sat on the professional panel that issued the 1997 guidelines for vitamin D, said this study shows that enough vitamin D “markedly reduces the risk of developing the most serious deadly cancers.”

He supports raising the recommended amount of the vitamin and said 1,000 daily units of vitamin D3 would now be reasonable for most people.

On the other hand, Dr. Michael Thun of the American Cancer Society favors keeping the current recommendation of 200 to 600 IUs for now. And he cautioned that more than 2,000 units is viewed in the guidelines as potentially dangerous.

Joan Lappe, the study’s lead researcher, said it “just adds to the great bunch of evidence that we need to have better vitamin D nutrition.” Some foods carry the vitamin, like salmon, tuna and fortified milk, but diet accounts for little of the vitamin circulating in the body. Overexposure to the sun can cause skin cancer.

Still, people should consult their doctors before boosting their vitamin dosage, several experts also warned.

More study is needed to determine if the effects in this study hold true for large groups of people and men as well as women.

High Intake of Vegetables and Fruit Reduces Risk of Lung Cancer

October 1st, 2010

From

CancerConsultants.com

According to an article recently published in the Annals of Oncology, a high intake of vegetables and fruit drastically reduces the risk of lung cancer. The reduced risk is particularly evident in smokers but is also apparent in non-smokers.

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the world. Although smoking is largely attributed to the prevalence of lung cancer, a significant portion of lung cancer patients have never smoked. Given the prevalence of this disease, researchers continue to evaluate ways to prevent or reduce the risk of the developing of lung cancer among both smokers and non-smokers. Diet has become an intense focus of such research in terms of its association with the risk of developing various types of cancers. In particular, studies have indicated that consumption of fruit and/or vegetables may significantly reduce an individuals risk of developing or dying from some types of cancers.

Researchers from China recently conducted a clinical study to evaluate a possible relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and the risk of developing lung cancer.

This study included 218 individuals with lung cancer and 436 individuals who did not have lung cancer or other smoking-related disease.

Individuals consuming the largest amount of vegetables had an approximate 60% reduced risk of developing lung cancer compared with individuals consuming the lowest amount of vegetables.

Individuals consuming the highest amount of fruits had an approximate 25% reduced risk of developing lung cancer compared with individuals consuming the lowest amount of fruit.

Smokers derived greater benefit from high vegetable and fruit consumption in terms of a reduction in the risk of developing lung cancer compared to non-smokers; however, non-smokers who consumed a large amount of vegetables and fruit also had a significantly reduced risk of lung cancer.

The researchers concluded that consumption of fruit and vegetables may significantly reduce the risk of the development of lung cancer, particularly among smokers. These data add to the growing body of evidence indicating the importance of fruits and vegetables in an individuals diet.

Reference:

Galeone C, Negri E, Pelucchi C, et al. Dietary intake of fruit and vegetable and lung cancer risk: a case-control study in harbin, northeast china. Annals of Oncology. 2007; 18: 388-392.

Dr. Perlmutter’s comment:

So let’s see. Increased consumption of friuts and vegetables reduces the risk of this and other cancers, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, coronary artery disease, and probably any other degenerative disease you can think of.