Will patients do what’s good for them?
While this study adds to the body of evidence linking diet and cancer, putting the information into action is another story, according to Halle Moore, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic, who was not involved in this study.
“We have had supportive data for the role of diet in general health outcomes, including cancer-related outcomes, for a long time. But getting the public to implement these dietary changes is a challenge, so certainly the more convincing data that we have and the more specific we can be with specific types of dietary interventions, it does make it more helpful to counsel patients,” Dr. Moore said in an interview.
She said the finding that dietary change post diagnosis can have a significant effect on lowering both all-cause and breast cancer–specific mortality is compelling evidence for a role of diet in breast cancer outcomes.
In the question-and-answer session following Dr. Wang’s presentation, Hans-Christian Kolberg, MD, from Marienhospital Bottrop at the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany), echoed the sentiment when he commented, “you have an important result that you did not mention in the conclusion: It is not too late to change diet after breast cancer diagnosis!”
This study was supported, in part, by grants from the National Cancer Institute, Breast Cancer Research Foundations, and Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundations. Dr. Wang, Dr. Moore, and Dr. Kolberg reported no relevant conflicts of interest.
SOURCE: Wang T et al. SABCS 2020, Abstract GS2-09.