Okay, folks, this is BIG NEWS! A research study out of the esteemed Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and two other academic centers may be the first of its kind to definitively connect healthy diet with reining in prostate cancer (PCa).

Specifically, the study population was done with PCa patients currently on Active Surveillance (AS) for their low-risk disease. AS comes with a big advantage: you can hold off on treatment with risks of urinary, sexual and bowel side effects—but there’s a catch. You must strictly follow your doctor’s monitoring protocol, which involves PSA tests, multiparametric MRI, and biopsy at prescribed intervals. Why monitor? Because low-risk disease can mutate, becoming more aggressive. It’s called progression.

Thus AS raises the question, how long can you stay on it before your cancer progresses? AS does not come with a crystal ball. Perhaps you’re the fortunate patient whose PCa never progresses, so you never need treatment as long as you live. However, as soon as your PSA rises, your MRI detects a suspicious area, and a targeted biopsy shows a higher Gleason grade, you are whisked into treatment.

What if there’s a way to buy more time on AS? A way to keep your cancer from progressing as long as possible? Maybe even for the length of your natural days? The key may be what you eat. Healthy diets like the Mediterranean diet are anti-inflammatory, while the typical Western diet (heavy in red meat, processed meats, fast foods, saturated fats, sugars, etc.) promotes inflammation in the body. Previous studies have linked chronic inflammation with the development of many types of cancer, including prostate cancer.

Men on AS who eat healthy diets buy time

On Oct. 17, 2024 the exciting news about the above study was announced in a press release out of Johns Hopkins:

“While there have been previous research studies looking at diet and its relationship to prostate cancer, we believe that ours is the first to provide statistically significant evidence that a healthy diet is associated with a reduction in risk of prostate cancer progressing to a higher grade group, as shown by a reduction in the percentage of men on active surveillance experiencing grade reclassifications over time,” says study co-senior author Christian Pavlovich, M.D., a professor in urologic oncology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and director of the Brady Urological Institute’s prostate cancer active surveillance program.

Their statistical data came from 866 men in their AS program. All had completed a valid survey covering various aspects of their diet, and the research team scored their diets according to the Healthy Eating Index. They also calculated the dietary inflammatory properties using the Dietary Inflammatory Index. Their findings are not surprising, therefore, given what we already know about the connection between inflammation in the body and cancer risk.

The team found that the healthier the diet, the lower the risk for PCa progression. Another way to say it is, the men who ate the healthiest and least inflammatory diets tended to extend their AS duration since they had the least risk of PCa progression. These results were statistically significant—meaning not mere chance. The team demonstrated a definite pattern, showing a link between anti-inflammatory diet and keeping PCa under control.

The Sperling Prostate Center blog has numerous posts on anti-inflammatory diets that support not just prostate health, but overall cardiovascular and metabolic wellness. In particular, we have focused on plant-based or plant-forward nutrition that can also boost mood health, sexual health, and much more.

We applaud the researchers at Johns Hopkins and their colleagues for their diligence in following hundreds of men on AS and correlating their diets with their reduced risk of PCa progression. Interested reader who would like to read the full study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), “Diet Quality, Dietary Inflammatory Potential, and Risk of Prostate Cancer Grade Reclassification,”^[i] can do so here. And for those interested in gradually transitioning to a non-inflammatory, plant-forward diet—and sticking with it—here are some tips from Mayo Clinic. Happy eating, and happy prostate!

NOTE: This content is solely for purposes of information and does not substitute for diagnostic or medical advice. Talk to your doctor if you are experiencing pelvic pain, or have any other health concerns or questions of a personal medical nature.

References

[i] Su ZT, Mamawala M, Landis PK, et al. Diet Quality, Dietary Inflammatory Potential, and Risk of Prostate Cancer Grade Reclassification. JAMA Oncol. Published online October 17, 2024.