I recently subscribed to a service called the MOSS Reports (Ralph W. Moss, PhD) that provided an approx. 400 page report on tongue cancer (both traditional and complementary treatments) and I also receive general cancer research newsletters on a regular basis now. In the one I received yesterday, he basically examines a series of papers showing that berries of various kinds have potent anticancer activity and the benefit of incorporating berries (fresh and flash-frozen) into one's daily diet. He particularly points out black raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries and says that human clinical studies have already begun. Of particular interest, he notes that Chris Weghorst, PhD from Ohio State University has shown that black raspberries can inhibit cancer of the oral cavity. Looks like we're going to start eating our daily berries as a precaution. Guess I can Vita-Mix them into my husband's shakes for now.
P.S. The 400 page report would have been great back in January when my husband was first diagnosed. For the cost though, I felt like I had pretty much found the same information through my own research on the internet. And in fact, in some areas it seemed just a bit out of date. However, I do like getting the newsletter updates.

The OCF news section has been reporting on the effects of various berries for almost three years now. If you use the search engine in the main part of the site it would bring up for you most of the studies that we have found in the news over the last 30 months or so. The OCF news section is updated several times a week thanks to the valuable assistance from Sheldon Sax, who you see posting here frequently. it currently has over 700 news articles of interest to oral cancer patients and their caregivers on it. You can scan it from the most current to the oldest, or you can look at it as a list of titles to choose from.... or you can search it for a particular word or phrase. if the studies are being done, between Sheldon's searches, and the clipping service the foundation subscribes to, we'll have it..... without paying for a subscription!

There is good evidence (some from clinical studies, albeit small ones) that certain plant pigments (such as the carotenoid lycopene) as well as some plant isoflavones (especially those found in soy) have an inhibitory effect on some cancers. Much of the work has been done on prostate cancer, which is an adenocarcinoma. It is often slow-growing and autopsy studies have found that latent (that is, tiny foci found after autopsy) PCa occurs in the glands of older men throughout the world at about the same rate. However only in western cultures does it seem to progress and become a serious health issue -- it is the major cause of cancer deaths in men in the USA, for example, about equal to number of women who die of breast cancer.

Epidemiologists also noted that men from cultures where PCa is rare, e.g. Japan, when they move to the USA, in a generation or so their PCa rate is the same as for the general USA population. So it is not some genetic resistance, it appears to be lifestyle. So researchers started to look at diet. Major differences were: "low PCa" diets were low in animal fat, red meat and dairy, high in fish, shellfish and poultry but still higher in soy, vegetables and fruits; "high PCa" diets were the opposite and also, very high in animal-derived fat. At the same time, researchers started to do lab studies to look at specific components of foods and how they affected PCa cells in vitro, and also, in mouse analogs. Several new anti-PCa drugs are actually in trial which involve components of soy (e.g."Equol"). Studies looking at rates of recurrance of advanced PCa in men given soy or lycopene (the latter found in tomatoes, esp. cooked tomatoes) have found significant reductions in recurrence rates. In fact, there is a generally-accepted "prostate-healthy" diet which appears to have some impact even after men have acquired the disease. My husband is part of a Hopkins study which is tracking men whose PCa is only being closely monitored over time (w/ no definitive treatment) and concurrent with this, the Hopkins epidemiology dept. is doing a "lifestyle/diet-tracking" study to see what differences in progression occur over time which may be related to lifestyle. (Incidentally, Barry's last two PCa biopsies at Hopkins have found no cancer...)

This is a long explanation to say that there is no reason to suspect that some of these substances might not also have a positive benefit to other cancers. The doctors with whom we have consulted feel that Barry has probably had this HNC for at least 2-3 years if not longer as it's stage IV. In fact, in Oct. 2003 he did have a lymph node swelling on right side which was considered just an infection due to some recent dental work and which went away -- this was exactly the same place as the cancer was found last month, so could mean he's had HNC node involvement for at least 2 years. He's been on a rigorous "prostate-healthy" diet since Feb. 2004. Comparing CT scans from Oct. 2004 to those taken earlier this month have shown that there has been very little change in 8 months; Hopkins doc said almost none, Sloan said 'less than 5%" and that only in one node. This could well be simply chance and some good luck, or just maybe...his diet has had some positive effect on slowing the HNC too.

In any case, these "prostate-healthy" diets are also good for your heart, blood pressure, colon and cholesterol/triglycerides. You will also lose a lot of weight pretty easily-- Barry lost 20 pounds, some of which he is trying to regain before starting treatment. (I lost 12 as I also pretty much eat same stuff).

I know at the National PCa Conference in DC last month, when asked whether diet could slow down cancer, a couple of the Hopkins cancer reseachers (Nelson and Coffey) said "yes"

Having said that, this doesn't mean you can just walk away and munch berries and soy nuts and hope your oral cancer goes away! It is biologically a different cancer and faster growing than PCa -- but diet and lifestyle changes may be able to help your body combat the disease, slow it down a bit and help prevent it coming back.

Gail Mackiernan

(Barry Cooper's wife)

Hello, Gail.
I, too, got the Moss Report when the panic of Tom's diagnosis was fresh and I was scrambling for help......and before I knew of this site. It was a hefty amount to pay, but at the time, we weren't concerned about cost.

For anyone out there thinking about subscribing, please do know that this site offers as much information - if not more - than the $300 subscription. Wish I could have gotten a refund!
Nicki

Gail, thanks for such an interesting post. If I can figure out how to print it, I am going to gie it to our 36 yr. old son and hope he will pay attention to it as well as steer our grandson in the right direction food wise. They are both fast food junkies-it just drives me NUTS. Amy

Brian, I don't know why I never discovered it before, but I had never visited the OCF News Section until you mentioned it in your reply above. What a wealth of information! I've been using search engines to find data about the H&N cancer topic, paying for the MOSS report, paying for (a few) full-text studies I was interested in, etc. - and all this time an impressive database on the topic was right in front of my eyes. Thank you for providing such a valuable service. This site is really pretty incredible when one views the breadth and depth of it.

Gail, that was an interesting post. Now that my husband is cancer-free and hopefully moving towards being able to eat real food again soon, I'm trying to develop a good anti-cancer diet for him that he might actually like. I've always eaten healthy foods, but not so for him. He's pretty receptive to it now though.

It's amazing what a cancer diagnosis can do to one's "preference" for certain foods...

Filet Mignon is my favorite food in the world, but I haven't had any red meat since one of the Dr's told me to avoid it.

Now I have to work on trying seafood...YUK! Maybe I'll wait for the G-tube and have Seth blenderize some salmon... :-)

Does anyone know if dried berries and/or freeze dried berries have the same antioxidant benefits as fresh fruit? This organic produce spoils so quickly, we can't possibly buy enough for a week and use it before it rots. All of our organic stores are on the other side of town and I work 40+ hours a week. I shop on weekends and just plan to throw some of it out. However, my hubby loves the dried fruits on his breakfast cereal (whole grain of course). If I knew that it was as beneficial as fresh berries, I would feel better about it.

Anemone - you are posting to a thread that hasn't been visited in a year, but the question is still valid. If you do a search in the news section of the web site, we have put up many articles over the last three years about berries, and dark fruits and vegitables as a source of potential anti cancer benefits. While I am a big berry eater, I don't honestly know if they are offering me any chemo-protective benefits. I would eat them anyway because I like them, and they are easy to get where I am. In the off season I eat tons of frozen ones and dried ones as well. But search and read the articles that the main web site pulls up for you, and also read the nutrition pages which start with links off of the main facts page, and talk about all this in detail. Afterwards, judge for yourself. There is no downside to consuming this healthy food source.

I have to chime in with Brian. I eat a huge bowl of fruit every day, as one meal, and because I like it. Blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries and anything else in season, melons, peaches, kiwi, pears, papaya, mangos, etc. It makes me feel better - is it really "chemopreventive"? Who knows. My wife pointed out to me that (fresh) fruits and vegetables are the only food we eat that are actually "alive" when we consume them. In any case the fiber is good for you.

Keeping these fresh is a challenge. Luckily I work at home and the market is 5 minutes away so I shop for fruit at least 3-4 times a week. Even so, I have some VERY happy and well fed worms in my composter.

Gary -- sounds like you're on the right track:

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Men who consume high quantities of fruits, especially citrus fruits and juices, have a significantly lower risk of developing oral premalignant lesions, irregular tissue that has not yet developed into cancer, according to the findings published in the American Journal of Epidemiology. ...

Citrus fruits, citrus fruit juice, and vitamin C-rich fruits and vegetables were associated with a significantly lower risk of oral premalignant lesions. Greater quantities of these foods in the diet were linked to a 30- to 40-percent lower risk.

For example, the risk of oral premalignant lesions in subjects with the highest level of citrus fruit juice in the diet was 30 percent lower than those with the lowest level.

Overall, the researchers conclude that "dietary recommendations to increase consumption of fruits are appropriate for preventing oral precancer and cancer."

The whole story, which was written in early October, is available here , in the Oral Cancer in the News part of the main OCF site.