New Study Finds Vegetables Can Prevent Bladder Cancer

At the buffet, not everyone rushes to capture the spectrum of Brussels, cauliflower and carrot. That could change because researchers at the Maryland Cancer Center report that spicy vegetables like broccoli, kale, collagen, carrots and water can offer protection against bladder cancer.

Investigators think that a compound called isothiocyanates (ITC) in these greasy vegetables activates a detoxifying enzyme that prevents cancer formation.

In the study featured in International Journal of Cancer, researchers compared 697 newly diagnosed bladder cancer patients to 708 controls matched by age, sex and race. After comparing group food intake, examiners found that healthy volunteers consumed more vegetables than bladder cancer patients.

However, these anti-cancer effects were not easily given to women in this study. Evidence of this protection against sexually transmitted cancer is under investigation.

For example, in 2005, researchers researched the lifestyle of 237 bladder cancer patients who helped shape 88,796 women enrolled in Nursing Health Studies. After evaluating the patient's diet, the examiner did not find any relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and the risk of bladder cancer. Incidentally, taking multivitamins or vitamins A, C or E does not affect the risk of bladder cancer in women.

However, three years earlier a study was presented at American Journal of Epidemiology found that vitamin E reduces the risk of bladder cancer.

In this study, scientists studied the relationship between vitamin C intake and individual vitamin E, and bladder cancer mortality among 991,522 adults. Researchers monitored the study participants through questionnaires from 1992 to 1998.

During the follow-up, 1,289 bladder cancer deaths occurred (962 men and 327 women). When comparing cancerous lifestyles by age, gender, and diet matched by cancer-free control, researchers found no correlation between vitamin C intake of bladder cancer.

However, regular use of vitamin E for at least 10 years is associated with decreased risk of bladder cancer death. Based on these results, investigators have concluded that long-term use of vitamin E may reduce the risk of bladder cancer.

Overall, consuming fruits and vegetables seems to reduce the risk of bladder cancer as one study involving 130 bladder patients in Serbia found. Although the results are mixed, studies of bladder cancer are increasingly suggesting that adding a little problem to your diet with antioxidant rich vegetables will ruin the opportunity for developing bladder cancer.

Source:

Holick, Crystal et al. Fruits and Vegetables, Carotenoids, Folates, and Vitamins A, C, E and Breast Cancer Risk among Women (USA). Causes and Controls of Cancer; December 2005, volume 16, no 10, pp. 1135-1145.

Jacobs, EJ et al. Use of Vitamin C and Vitamin E and Cancer of the Bladder in the US Cohort of Men and Women. American Journal of Epidemiology; December 2002, volume 156, no 11, pp. 1002-1010.

Radosavljevi, V; S Jankovi, J Marinkovi & M Doki. Diet and Urine: A Case Control Study. International Urology and Nephrology; Jun 2005, volume 37, no 2, pp. 283-289.

Sanchez-Ortiz, Ricardo. Compounds Found in Cruciferous Vegetables Related to Risk of Decreased Bladder Cancer. UroToday; May 17, 2007.

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