Lee Swanson Research Update

Flavonoid-Rich Diet May Cut Pancreatic Cancer Risk

June 2007

A diet rich in flavonoids from foods such as onions, apples and berries may cut the risk of developing pancreatic cancer by about 25%, according to scientists reporting at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research.

And the benefits may be even more pronounced amongst smokers, with a risk reduction of over 59%, said lead study author Ute Nothlings from the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke.

The new study, part of the Multiethnic Cohort Study of 183,518 residents of California and Hawaii, reports that subjects with the highest consumption of flavonoids from the diet had significant risk reductions, compared to the lowest consumption, with smokers particularly benefiting from flavonoid-rich diets.

Researchers used food frequency questionnaires to assess dietary intakes and followed them for an average of eight years, with 529 incident cases of pancreatic cancer documented in the study population. Researchers also stated that theirs is the first study to examine prospectively specific classes of flavonoids (quercetin, found in onions and apples; kaempferol, found in spinach and some cabbages; and myricetin, found mostly in red onions and berries) and pancreatic cancer risk.

While all three flavonoids helped cut the risk of pancreatic cancer, quercetin and kaempferol seemed to play the biggest role in cutting risk on smokers.

Nothlings stated: "Anti-carcinogenic effects of flavonoids in general have been attributed to the ability of these constituents to inhibit cell cycle, cell proliferation and oxidative stress, and to induce detoxification enzymes and apoptosis."

Interest in flavonoids is growing rapidly and a mounting body of science, including epidemiological, laboratory-based and randomized clinical trials, continues to report the cancer-fighting potential of a number of different flavonoids, including isoflavones and anthocyanidins.

Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research

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