Scientists have been able to show for the first time that super foods like pomegranate, green tea and broccoli help fight prostate cancer.

The team performed a six-month trial at Bedford Hospital with 203 men who had prostate cancer. The researchers split the men into two groups, including those who took a specially developed superfood capsule and those who took a placebo. The doctors, patients and statisticians were not informed who was taking the capsule and who was taking the placebo.
They found that those who took a capsule containing essence of pomegranate, green tea, turmeric and broccoli had 63 percent less prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels than those who took the placebo. The PSA is a level of the protein produced by the prostate gland which is an indicator of prostate cancer.

Researchers reported that men who experienced a lower PSA increase took a purified polyphenol rich food pill called Pomi-T, which was designed by Professor Robert Thomas, a researcher on the project from both Bedford Hospital and Addenbrooke’s Hospital.
This test is the first time scientists have firmly established an influence on markers of cancer progression using a scientifically robust evaluation.

“Healthy eating and lifestyle is the main way of helping to combat the development of cancer but men can now also turn to a whole food supplement which has been shown to work,” Thomas said. “We hope this will help millions of men to help combat the onset of prostate cancer.”
If anything, this study is able to prove that super foods definitely do not elevate the risk of prostate cancer, but fried food does. Researchers reported in the journal The Prostatein January this year about how they were able to link fried food consumption and prostate cancer. They said the increase in cancer risk could be due to the carcinogenic compounds found in fried food when oil is heated to temperatures needed for deep frying. The scientists said people who consumed fried foods once or more each week had a 30 to 37 percent increased risk of developing prostate cancer.

“The link between prostate cancer and select deep-fried foods appeared to be limited to the highest level of consumption – defined in our study as more than once a week – which suggests that regular consumption of deep-fried foods confers particular risk for developing prostate cancer,” explained the study’s author Janet L. Stanford, co-director of the Hutchinson Center’s Program in Prostate Cancer Research.

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online

M-CSF May Act As Powerful Prognostic Factor For Multiple Myeloma

By Jessica Langholtz

A recent study published in the journal Medical Oncology determined that the cytokine M-CSF is highly predictive of survival in multiple myeloma patients. In the study, researchers evaluated a diverse set of cytokines to determine their usefulness as prognostic factors in multiple myeloma.

Cytokines are proteins secreted by immune cells to generate an immune response. They are involved with allergic responses, inflammation, blood cell development, and the development of multiple myeloma and other types of cancer.

Currently, the International Staging System predicts the stage of disease progression and median survival time for multiple myeloma based on a combination of serum beta-2 microglobulin and albumin levels. Beta-2 microglobulin is a molecule commonly found on the surface of cells; serum albumin is the most abundant protein in human blood plasma. Elevated serum levels of beta-2 microglobulin and low serum levels of albumin indicate increased disease severity and progression of myeloma (see related Beacon news).

The study published in Medical Oncology evaluated the relationship between the blood serum levels of various cytokines in 64 untreated myeloma patients and the patients’ survival rates. Patients were followed up over a period of over seven years. The serum beta-2 microglobulin level was increased in 40 percent of patients, whereas the serum albumin level was low in 45 percent of patients.

Researchers observed a relationship between the cytokine M-CSF and patient survival rates. Patients with normal M-CSF levels had a median survival time of 780 days, while patients with elevated M-CSF concentrations had a median survival time of 155 days.

Most significantly, M-CSF more accurately predicted disease severity and progression than beta-2 microglobulin, which is the established prognostic factor for myeloma.

The authors of the study concluded that M-CSF is a powerful prognostic factor for multiple myeloma and should be considered in novel therapeutic treatments.