Healthy Eating Resources, Recipes, & Research for Cancer Survivors

Mayo Clinic
Will eating soy increase my risk of breast cancer? - Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
Green Smoothie Recipe
HOW TO BREAK UP WITH SUGAR - (video 1:34)

Loma Linda University Health
Your Seasonal Guide to Cancer-Fighting Foods - "This guide helps you add each season's most nutritious anti-cancer foods to your diet."
Live It - Episode 11: Lower your Risk of Colon Cancer (video 1:56)
Live It - Episode 10: Vegetarian Diet (video 2:18) "If giving up meat entirely is too much, why not reconsider how often you eat meat?"

Processed Meats and Cancer: It’s Not Just Nitrates - Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition

What are the Best Sources of Protein? - Anticancer Lifestyle Program

6 Cancer-Fighting Foods to Add to Your Diet - Eating Well Magazine

May 13 - Prostate Cancer Study: More Health Benefits from Plant-Based Diet - University of California San Francisco
"A study of more than 2,000 men with localized prostate cancer found that eating a primarily plant-based diet was associated with a 47% lower risk that their cancer would progress compared with those who consumed the most animal products."

April 22, 2024 - Observing a Healthy Diet May Reduce Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in Breast Cancer Survivors - Oxford University Press
"The investigators discovered that the patients whose diets were most similar to the DASH [Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension] diet at the time of their breast cancer diagnosis had a 47% lower risk of heart failure, 23% lower risk of arrhythmia, 23% lower risk of cardiac arrest, 21% lower risk of valvular heart disease, and 25% lower risk of venous thromboembolic disease compared with those whose diets were least aligned with the DASH diet."

Feb. 13, 2024 - Plant-Based Diet Tied to Improved Sexual Health in Men Treated for Prostate Cancer - NYU Grossman School of Medicine and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
"A diet that limits meat and dairy but is rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts is linked to less erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence, and other common side effects seen in patients who had prostate cancer, a new study shows."

Oct. 9, 2022 - Mediterranean diet improves immunotherapy response rates and progression-free survival in advanced melanoma, new study suggests - United European Gastroenterology
"A Mediterranean diet, containing mono-and polyunsaturated fats from olive oil, nuts and fish, polyphenols and fibre from vegetables, fruit, and wholegrains, was significantly associated with an improved response to immunotherapy drugs called Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors (ICIs). ICIs, which have been highly successful in treating melanoma, work by blocking immune system checkpoints, which then force the body’s own T-cells to attack cancers." Study researchers also found "... a Mediterranean diet was significantly associated with progression-free survival at 12 months."

Sept. 13, 2021 - Studies Highlight The Benefits Of Plant-Based Diet For Men's Health (including Prostate Cancer) - American Urological Association
Key Findings include:
- Greater overall plant-based consumption was associated with a significantly lower risk of fatal prostate cancer.
- In addition to well-established benefits for general health and the environment, data from this prospective study provide supportive evidence that greater consumption of healthful plant-based foods may be associated with a lower risk of aggressive prostate cancer, with the strongest results among younger men.

Feb. 28, 2021 - Healthy gut microbiome improves success of cancer treatment - King’s College of London
"Less than 50% of patients respond positively to immunotherapy for melanoma so finding strategies to increase the number of positive responders is crucial." According to Professor Tim Spector, "The ultimate goal is to identify which specific features of the microbiome are directly influencing the clinical benefits of immunotherapy to exploit these features in new personalized approaches to support cancer immunotherapy. But in the meantime, this study highlights the potential impact of good diet and gut health on chances of survival in patients undergoing immunotherapy."

Dec. 23, 2021 - High-fiber diet associated with improved progression-free survival and response to immunotherapy in melanoma patients - University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
"Patients with melanoma who reported eating more fiber-rich foods when they began immunotherapy treatment survived longer without cancer growth than patients with insufficient dietary fiber intake, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center published today in Science. The benefit was most noticeable in patients who did not take commercially available probiotic supplements. Parallel pre-clinical studies supported the observational findings."

June 2, 2021 - Researchers Find Evidence That Diet Can Alter the Microbiome to Affect Breast Cancer Risk - Wake Forest School of Medicine
"Researchers also conducted a double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial with breast cancer patients. Patients either received placebo or fish oil supplements for approximately two to four weeks before lumpectomy or mastectomy.
Results showed that fish oil supplementation significantly modified the breast microbiome in both non-cancerous and malignant breast tissue. For example, scientists found longer-term administration of fish oil supplements (four weeks) increased the proportional abundance of Lactobacillus in the normal tumor-adjacent breast tissue. Lactobacillus is a genus of bacteria shown to decrease breast cancer tumor growth in preclinical models, suggesting potential anti-cancer properties of this intervention.”

March 20, 2021 - White button mushrooms could slow progression of prostate cancer - Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope
While both of the studies referenced in this article involved either Mushroom powder or extract form, I thought it was worth sharing that researchers found "The chemicals present in white button mushrooms may slow the progression of prostate cancer..."

March 9, 2021 - Not so sweet: UB study finds increased risk of death among breast cancer patients who drink sugar-sweetened soda - University at Buffalo
“Compared to women who never or rarely drank non-diet soda, those who reported drinking non-diet soda five times or more per week had a 62% higher likelihood of dying from any causes, and were 85% more likely to die from breast cancer specifically.”

Jan. 7, 2021 - Mediterranean diet may decrease risk of prostate cancer progression for men on active surveillance - The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
"After adjusting for factors known to increase risk of cancer getting worse over time, such as age, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and tumor volume, men with a diet that contained more fruits, vegetables, legumes, cereals and fish had a reduced risk of their prostate cancer growing or advancing to a point where many would consider active treatment."

June 2, 2019 - Tart cherry shown to decrease joint pain, sore muscles in certain breast cancer patients
“This randomized, double-blind trial compared the consumption of 1 ounce of tart cherry concentrate in 8 ounces of water daily for six weeks with a placebo group in women with stage 1, 2 or 3 non-metastatic breast cancer.” Study results revealed "Patients who completed the trial recorded a 34.7% mean decrease in pain compared to 1.4% in the placebo group."

Feb. 28, 2018 - Nut consumption may aid colon cancer survival
"The study followed 826 participants in a clinical trial for a median of 6.5 years after they were treated with surgery and chemotherapy. Those who regularly consumed at least two, one-ounce servings of nuts each week demonstrated a 42% improvement in disease-free survival and a 57% improvement in overall survival." Tree nuts include almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews, and pecans. Peanuts are actually in the legume family of foods.