How Vitamin E Slows Prostate Cancer

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Recently, vitamin E has been alleged to play a role in the prevention of prostate cancer. Researchers now believe they have insight into how this compound slows the development of the disease.

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of death from cancer among men and the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer among men. Researchers have yet to find a cure for the disease, though they continue to progress in the availability of treatments.

Researchers from the University of Rochester Medical Center now believe they have found a better way to inhibit the disease. According to a new study, vitamin E interferes with the ability of prostate cancer cells to produce prostate-specific antigen (PSA) as well as the androgen receptor. These are two proteins essential to the progression and development of prostate cancer.

In the study, prostate cancer cells that were exposed to vitamin E showed a drop in PSA levels by as much as 90 percent, a sign of slowed cancer cell growth. In addition, researchers saw a 25 percent to 50 percent decrease in the total number of cancer cells. These findings support prior studies that show approximately one-third fewer cases of prostate cancer in men taking a vitamin E compound.

This new understanding of the role of vitamin E in prostate cancer prevention is significant because many current drugs used to treat prostate cancer drastically impair the role of testosterone in men. This, in turn, takes a toll on men's overall health. Because vitamin E specifically targets the cancer-causing cells, it bypasses testosterone.

In conclusion, Edward Messing, M.D., from the University of Rochester, says, "This is exciting and quite promising, but until we do further studies in people, we can't really recommend that every man take vitamin E to prevent the disease." In addition, researchers warn different forms of vitamin E produce different results, and therefore, further studies will be needed to determine which is the most effective and how it should be implemented.

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SOURCE: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2002;99:7408-7413