Plant-Based Diet May Aid Prostate Cancer Outcomes

FRIDAY, May 3, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Consuming a primarily plant-based diet may be associated with better cancer-specific health outcomes among men with prostate cancer, according to a study published online May 1 in JAMA Network Open.

Vivian N. Liu, from the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues examined whether postdiagnostic plant-based dietary patterns are associated with the risk for prostate cancer progression and prostate cancer-specific mortality. The analysis included 2,062 participants in the multisite Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Research Endeavor study.

The researchers found that men scoring in the highest versus lowest quintile of the Plant-based Diet Index (PDI) had lower risk for progression (hazard ratio, 0.53). There was no association for healthful PDI and risk for progression overall. However, for those with Gleason grade ≥7 at diagnosis (680 men), the highest healthful PDI quintile was associated with a lower risk for progression versus the lowest healthful PDI quintile (hazard ratio, 0.45).

"The findings of this cohort study suggest that plant-based dietary patterns may be inversely associated with risk of prostate cancer progression, although future research and replication of our findings is needed," the authors write. "These data are consistent with prior research demonstrating the importance of dietary factors in overall health and well-being."

Two authors disclosed ties to Gilead Sciences and/or Veracyte.

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