Frequent consumption of miso soup and high intake of isoflavones may be associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer, according to a new study. Isoflavones, which are abundant in soy, have been shown in laboratory studies to inhibit breast cancer, but it is unknown whether soy consumption is associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer in women.
Seiichiro Yamamoto, Ph.D., of the National Cancer Center Research Institute in Tokyo, and colleagues surveyed 21,852 Japanese women between the ages of 40 and 59 about their frequency of soy consumption. After 10 years, 179 of women had been diagnosed with breast cancer.
Women who drank three or more bowls of miso soup per day or consumed 25.3 mg/day of isoflavones (in the form of genistein) had approximately half the risk of breast cancer compared with women who had less than one bowl of miso soup per day or who consumed 6.9 mg/day of genistein. The observed benefit was greatest among postmenopausal women. The authors found no association between the consumption of soyfoods such as soybeans, tofu, deep-fried tofu, or fermented soybeans and the risk of breast cancer.
Vitamin D Analog Promising Against a Variety of Cancers
Paricalcitol, a vitamin D analog that may slow cancer growth without causing a build-up of calcium in the blood (a common problem with the vitamin D analog 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3), appears to have antitumor activity against myeloid leukemia, myeloma, and colon cancer cells, according to a new study.
Takashi Kumagai, M.D., of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center at the University of California at Los Angeles, and colleagues examined the antitumor activity of paricalcitol in vitro and in vivo. They found that paricalcitol inhibited the proliferation of myeloid leukemia, myeloma, and colon cancer cell lines by modulating cell cycle progression, differentiation, and apoptosis. Growth of human colon cancers implanted in mice was reduced in mice treated with paricalcitol as compared with untreated mice.
The authors note that paricalcitol has already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism. "Innovative clinical trials of this agent for preleukemia (myelodysplastic syndrome), maintenance therapy for acute myeloid leukemia and multiple myeloma, and adjuvant therapy for colon cancer are reasonable to consider," they write.
Carbohydrate and Sugar Intake not Associated with Increased Risk of Colorectal Cancer
Diets high in glycemic load, carbohydrates, or sugar do not appear to be associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, according to a new study. Paul D. Terry, Ph.D., of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park, N.C., and his colleagues examined the association between dietary intake and colorectal cancer risk among 49,124 women participating in a randomized trial of breast cancer in Canada. During an average 16.5 years of follow-up, there were 616 cases of colorectal cancers. However, there was no association between diets high in glycemic load, carbohydrates, or sugar and risk of colorectal cancer.
Contact: Tom Hawkins, 919-541-1402, hawkins@niehs.nih.gov.
Note: The Journal of the National Cancer Institute is published by Oxford University Press and is not affiliated with the National Cancer Institute. Attribution to the Journal of the National Cancer Institute is requested in all news coverage.
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JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute