Fortunately my little brush with cancer was caught early enough I hope I won’t have future problems, but it’s probably a good thing I don’t eat red meat very often.
Western Diet Linked To Colon Cancer Recurrence
Colon cancer survivors who eat a “Western” diet high in red meat, fats and refined grains are more than three times as likely to have a recurrence as those who consume a “prudent” diet high in fish, poultry, fruits and vegetables, researchers said Tuesday.
Scientists already knew that avoiding a Western diet could reduce the risk of contracting colon cancer in the first place, but this is the first study associating the diet with a recurrence of the disease, Dr. Jeffrey A. Meyerhardt and his colleagues at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston reported today in the Journal of the American Medical Assn.
Such diets have not been linked to the recurrence of any other type of cancer, with the possible exception of breast cancer, for which there have been conflicting results.
Many physicians have been telling colon cancer survivors to avoid a Western diet, said Dr. Lily Lai of the City of Hope cancer center, who was not involved in the study. The report “at least gives us some data” to support that recommendation, she said.
Colon and rectal cancer combined are the third most common form of cancer among men and women in the United States, with nearly 154,000 new cases each year and 52,000 deaths. It is curable by surgery if caught early, and the incidence has been declining because of increased screening.
One Response
This is precisely the reason I gave up red meat about 17 years ago. I have colon cancer in my family. I loved red meat. But I had to stop eating it, and most processed food, too.