Anti-breast cancer diet disappointing

The Baltimore Sun

Despite some high hopes, a diet loaded with fruits and vegetables doesn't seem to help women survive breast cancer, researchers reported yesterday.

But experts said that doesn't mean cheeseburgers and beer are the way to go. Even though it hasn't been proved, "There's a lot of evidence from observational studies that maintaining a healthy weight and moderate or no alcohol consumption are associated with lower risk" of breast cancer, said Susan Gapstur, associate director of cancer prevention at Northwestern University.

One possible reason for the high-veggie diet's apparent lack of benefit, the researchers said, is that the women in the study did not lose weight or increase their physical activity.

The study, published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association, involved more than 3,000 women who had been treated for early breast cancer. Half were asked to follow the recommendations for eating five servings of fruit and vegetables a day.

The rest were assigned to a counseling program urging them toward a goal of five daily servings of vegetables, three servings of fruit and 16 ounces of vegetable juice. This group also was told to eat 30 grams of fiber a day (the equivalent of 10 apples) and to get only 15 percent to 20 percent of their calories from fat.

For a woman consuming 1,500 calories a day, that meant no more fat than what's in a McDonald's Quarter-Pounder (no cheese) and a small order of french fries.

The women, ages 18 to 70, were enrolled in the study between 1995 and 2000 and followed until 2006. Over the course of the study, 518 women had recurrences of their breast cancer and 262 died of the disease. But they were evenly divided between the diet group and the control group.

The study, conducted by John Pierce and colleagues at the University of California, San Diego, appeared to contradict the findings of a trial reported last year, in which breast cancer survivors who reduced their fat intake were found to be less likely to suffer a relapse.

However, food diaries kept by the participants in the new study showed they never reached the goal of getting less than 20 percent of their calories from fat. They consumed more fruit, more vegetables, more fiber and less fat than the comparison group, but after an average seven years of follow-up, average fat intake was 29 percent, or slightly higher than it was when they started. The control group was at 32 percent.

According to the National Cancer Institute, which sponsored the study, very few things are proven to prevent breast cancer or reduce its risk of recurrence. They include drugs that block the action of the hormone estrogen on breast cells and surgical removal of the ovaries. There is some evidence that exercise reduces risk, especially in younger, thinner women.

Judy Peres writes for the Chicago Tribune.

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