Walnuts May Slow Breast Cancer Growth
Studies at West Virginia’s Marshall University have linked walnut consumption with suppression of breast cancer. Researchers have reported that eating two ounces of walnuts daily for as little as two weeks significantly changed gene expression in confirmed breast cancers. The investigators also found that walnut consumption slowed breast cancer growth and reduced the risk of the disease in mice. In a clinical trial, women who had undergone needle biopsies to evaluate breast lumps were asked to eat two ounces of walnuts daily until follow-up surgery. (These lumps were confirmed as breast cancer in all the women who remained in the trial). Two weeks after the initial biopsies, more specimens were taken from the breast cancers. Tests showed that expression of 456 identified genes had changed for the better, apparently due to walnut consumption, the researchers reported. Study leader W. Elaine Hardman, Ph.D., said the results “support the hypothesis that, in humans, walnut consumption could suppress growth and survival of breast cancers.” She added that a large-scale study is needed to confirm that walnut consumption actually does reduce the risk of breast cancer or breast cancer recurrence. The study was partly funded by the California Walnut Commission, which provided the walnuts.
Source:
W. Elaine Hardman et al, “Dietary walnut altered gene expressions related to tumor growth, survival, and metastasis in breast Cancer patients: A pilot clinical trial.” Nutrition Research, March 10, 2019; DOI: 10.1016/j.nutres.2019.03.004
Also in this week’s bulletins:
- Even A Little Bit Of Meat Is Unhealthy
- Mobile Phones, Sleep & Productivity
- Recipe: True Food Kitchen’s Good Earth Kale Cobb
