Men who consumed a Mediterranean diet had slower prostate cancer progression

Photo credit MD Anderson news

CANCER DIGEST – Jan. 9, 2021 – Men with early stage prostate cancer who were being actively monitored had lower risk of their cancer progressing if they followed a diet similar to a Mediterranean diet, a new study shows.

In a study of 410 men with a diagnosis of early stage prostate cancer were given a 170-item baseline food frequency questionnaire. 

A Mediterranean diet score was calculated for all participants and sorted into one of three groups by how much the participant ate foods associated with a Mediterranean diet. The study by researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center was published in the Jan. 7, 2021 journal Cancer. 

After adjusting for factors known to increase risk of cancer getting worse over time, such as age, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and tumor volume, The researchers, led by Justin Gregg, M.D., assistant professor of Urology at University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, found that men with a diet that contained more fruits, vegetables, legumes, cereals and fish had a reduced risk of their prostate cancer growing or advancing to a point where they would consider active treatment. 

After a median follow-up of 36 months, 76 men saw their cancer progress to a point of seeking treatment. When the researchers analyzed the scores for each participant, they found that for every one point increase in their Mediterranean diet score the men had a greater than 10 percent decreased risk of cancer progression. 

The study, whose largest number of participants were white, also found that the effect of a Mediterranean diet was more pronounced in African American participants and others who self-identified as non-white. Similarly, the effect of the diet was more pronounced in patients with diabetes or used statin drugs.

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Sources: MD Anderson press release and the Jan. 7 journal Cancer