The risk of pancreatic cancer could be reduced by consumption of dietary antioxidants such as vitamins C, E and selenium, according to a new study.
Published in Gut journal and using data from 24,000 participants in the UK branch of the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer (EPIC) study, researchers found that lifestyles that included higher than average amounts of the vitamins were associated with a lower incidence of the condition.
If the link does indeed prove to be causal, the researchers estimate that one in 12 cases of pancreatic cancer might be avoided.
Specifically, the research – led by Dr. Andrew Hart from the University of East Anglia - found that those who featured in the top 25% in terms of consumption of vitamins E, C and selenium were 67% less likely to develop pancreatic cancer than those in the lowest 25%.
The research was based on the detailed food diaries kept by the participants, a methodology believed to be the most accurate in undertaking wide scale studies of this type. The data lends itself to investigation of other relationships between food consumption and health.
