MedWire News: Postmenopausal breast cancer patients with a diet high in plant compounds called lignans have better survival rates than other older breast cancer patients, US study results suggest.

Lignans are weak hormone-like compounds that are found in seeds, whole grains, vegetables and fruit. Previous laboratory studies have indicated that lignans may influence hormone levels in cancer cells and help disrupt tumour growth, explained Dr Susan McCann, from Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York.

To investigate further, Dr McCann and team studied the diets of 1122 women with breast cancer who were monitored between 1996 and 2001.

All of the women completed a food questionnaire, which included information on their intake of plant foods containing lignans.

Analysis revealed that dietary lignans were not associated with survival rates among premenopausal women with breast cancer.

However, among postmenopausal women with the disease, those with a diet high in lignans were up to 70% less likely to die than those with low dietary levels of these compounds.

"Postmenopausal women diagnosed with breast cancer who reported high intakes of lignans, which in this study were supplied mostly by dark bread, peaches, broccoli, oranges, winter squash, strawberries, coffee and tea, had a statistically significant reduction in death rates," summarised Dr McCann.

She added: ""This study suggests that certain fruits and vegetables may offer more protection than others."

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in San Diego, California, USA.