text_1: Starving prostate cancer with what you eat for dinner
text_2: This news release attempts to translate preliminary research on plant chemicals into actionable dietary advice. Bad move. Researchers used an innovative screening strategy to cull through 142 natural compounds to identify a combination of three phytochemicals — found in foods such as turmeric, apple peels and red grapes — that inhibited the growth of implanted prostate tumors in mice. Their work is described in the online journal Precision Oncology. But it’s a big leap from the lab table to the dinner table, where the release says that by indulging in certain foods, you can “enjoy the fact that you are eating something that could play a role starving — or even preventing — cancer.” Nowhere does it warn that studies of cell lines or animals don’t prove a human benefit. Combinations of plant chemicals have become a focus of cancer research, driven by their relative safety, low cost, and wide availability. Lab studies have found substances in plants can reduce inflammation, stimulate the immune system, protect and repair normal cells, and slow the growth of cancer cells, among other things. But research on the effects of these substances to fight specific cancers is still in its infancy, and most experts advise eating a wide variety of fruits and vegetables for better health. Prostate cancer is an area where men feel particularly vulnerable because it’s widespread — about 3 million American men are living with prostate cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute — and there are few actionable steps for prevention. Suggesting a simple solution — such as eating a few specific foods — may give men a false sense of security.