A new study in mice has revealed a molecular link between a high-fat diet and the growth and spread of prostate cancer. The findings raise the possibility that changes in diet could potentially improve treatment outcomes in some men, the study leaders believe.
In the study, the researchers also showed that an anti-obesity drug that targets a protein that controls fat synthesis could potentially be used to treat metastatic prostate cancer.
The study, funded by NCI, was published in Nature Genetics on January 15.
Population studies have long suggested that diet influences prostate cancer risk, including the risk for developing metastatic cancer. For example, until recently, the disease was relatively rare in Asia, where diets have been typically lower in fat than in the West. Studies have shown, however, that when men emigrate from Asia to the United States and adopt western dietary habits, their risk for prostate cancer rises to that of other Americans.
Source: NCI
