AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RESEARCH NEWSLETTER 59, WINTER 1998 Research Update: Flaxseed Shows Promise Against Breast Cancer Flaxseed is a relatively new contender in the health arena, but it shows a lot of promise in fighting disease -- including a possible role in cancer prevention. Until recently, only test tube research and animal studies backed up the anti-cancer claims for flaxseed (which can be ground to make flour or meal). Now, with a grant from AICR, Drs. Lilian Thompson and Paul Goss of the University of Toronto are testing flaxseed on women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. Effects on Estrogen "Flax is a potent source of lignans, which are plant compounds with estrogen-like qualities that may interfere with the development of breast cancer," says Dr. Thompson. In earlier research, she studied 70 common foods and found that flaxseed produced 75 to 800 times more lignans than other foods. In her new study, postmenopausal women with breast cancer are fed flaxseed thats been baked in muffins. "The intervention takes place between the time the women are diagnosed with breast cancer and the time of surgery," Dr. Thompson explains. Each day, the women in the study eat a muffin containing 25 grams of flaxseed, while a control group eats muffins without flaxseed. Monitoring Women Several biomarkers -- including the rate of tumor growth -- are checked to determine any changes that may be linked to lignans. "Any reduction in the rate of growth is a good indicator," Dr. Thompson says. "We hope to study 100 women to determine whether dietary flaxseed can reduce tumor growth and whether this effect is related to the ability of the lignans to affect the hormones estrogen and progesterone, "Dr. Thompson adds. If the study proves successful, she would like to use the results to justify expanding the research to a larger group. "If flaxseed produces the same effects as anti-estrogens such as tamoxifen, it has the potential for use in both breast cancer treat-ment and prevention," she says. Facts About Flaxseed Flaxseed comes from the plant whose fibers are used to make linen cloth. It's available in the form of flour, meal and oil and can be found in many health food stores. Flaxseed meal is like cornmeal in consistency and has a slightly nutty flavor. You can mix one or more tablespoons of the meal into breads; sprinkle it on cereal, salads or yogurt; stir it into soups or add it to casseroles. Food manufacturers use flax in multi-grain breads, muffins, cookies, breakfast bars and multi-grain cereals. Keep ground flaxseed refrigerated. Flaxseed oil was once believed to be toxic because it turns rancid very quickly, but now it is treated to last longer. Flaxseed oil is called edible linseed oil in some parts of the U.S. This is not to be confused with inedible linseed oil, which has been chemically extracted from flaxseeds for use as furniture polish American Institute for Cancer Research (www.aicr.org) Remember we are NOT Doctors and have NO medical training. This site is like an Encylopedia - there are many pages, many links on many topics. Support our work with any size DONATION - see left side of any page - for how to donate. You can help raise awareness of CAM.