Omega 3 May Prevent Colon Cancer
Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 7:13AM
EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), a form of omega 3 fatty acid, seems to work as well as prescription medication to reduce the number and size of precancerous polyps that can lead to colorectal cancer. A study in England including 55 patients with a genetic mutation that triggers development of precancerous polyps (a condition known as familial adenomatous polyposis or FAP) found that six months of treatment with a purified form of EPA reduced the number of polyps that developed by 12 percent; among participants who received a placebo instead, the number of polyps increased by 10 percent. In addition, the size of the polyps declined by more than 12.5 percent in the EPA group, compared to a 17 percent increase among those on the placebo. These effects were similar to those achieved by using celecoxib, a drug that can lead to undesirable cardiovascular side effects in older patients. The researchers suggested that their EPA strategy might help to prevent colorectal cancer in people with non-familial polyps. The study was published on line on March 18, 2010 in the journal Gut.
More information on colon cancer and omega 3.