An exciting study has now been completed that asked the question, "Does what a breast cancer survivor eats affect her risk of a recurrence?" The researchers also assessed whether diet affects a breast cancer survivor's chances of developing a brand-new tumor of the breast, unrelated to the original breast cancer.
For reasons I'll explain, these scientists first analyzed their data in such a way that allowed them (the scientists) to look specifically at only those women who did not have hot flashes after completing treatment for cancer. Why? Because it's well known that women who have early-stage breast cancer, and no hot flashes, usually have a higher incidence of recurrence than those who have hot flashes after treatment.
This research was triggered by doctors noting that women who are experiencing hot flashes have an associated lower level of estrogen circulating in their bloodstreams, while the absence of hot flashes is associated with higher levels of estrogen. And it so happens that reducing the amount of circulating estrogen is a major treatment strategy in breast cancer.
When the scientists next looked at the diets of their subjects, they found that eating certain foods can indeed reduce the likelihood of cancer in those women who did not have hot flashes after cancer treatment, bringing their chances more in line with those of the women who were experiencing personal power surges (hot flashes) after their treatment.
Two different diets were compared among a total of more than 3,000 women participating in the study. One half of the women ate a diet that was extremely—most of us would say excessively—high in veggies and fruits; the other half were given the general, U.S. government recommendations for diet, which suggest we all aim for 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day. Five a day amounts to a good amount of produce, it's true, but 5-a-day is still pretty meager compared to the amounts eaten by the first group.
The study showed that those who ate enormous amounts of veggies and fruits had a significantly lower rate of getting breast cancer a second time (16.1 percent of women in that group), compared to those who follow "just" the government's recommended 5-a-day diet plan (23.6 percent). This dietary effect was even greater in women who had gone through menopause: a whopping 47-percent lower risk. Wow!! So ladies, take your grocery cart to the produce aisle and load up!
