Eating nuts may improve colon cancer survival
Diets with higher nut
consumption appeared to be associated with reduced risk for disease recurrence
and mortality among patients with stage III colon cancer, according to results
from the prospective, observational CALGB 89803 study.
Observational studies
have suggested diet and lifestyle factors — such as type 2 diabetes, obesity,
sedentary lifestyle, Western-pattern diet, increased dietary glycemic load and
high intake of sugar-sweetened beverages — are associated with risk for colon cancer recurrence and death. Although nut intake is associated with lower risk for
type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance, whether nut
consumption had an effect of colon cancer recurrence and survival had not been known.
“These studies support
the hypothesis that behaviors that make you less insulin resistant, including
eating nuts, seem to improve outcomes in colon cancer,” Charles S. Fuchs, MD, MPH, director of the Yale Cancer Center, said in a press release.
“However, we don’t know yet what exactly about nuts is beneficial.”
Fuchs and colleagues
evaluated data from 826 patients with stage III colon cancer who reported
dietary intake on a food frequency questionnaire while enrolled in a randomized
trial of adjuvant chemotherapy. During a median 6.5 years of follow-up, 199
patients experienced recurrence or developed new primary tumors and 177
patients died, 39 of whom died without documented cancer recurrence.
Subgroup analyses showed
the improvement was confined to consumption of tree nuts improved colon cancer
survival— which include almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews and pecans. Researchers
found no association between the consumption of peanut butter and improved
outcomes.
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