THE MALIGNANT CELL

				"He who has a thousand friends has not a friend to spare, 
				And he who has one enemy shall meet him everywhere." 

				ALI-Ibn-ABU-TALIB (7th c.), quoted in Emerson's 
				Conduct of Life, 7. 

There are billions of molecules in the body and if only one goes haywire, it can take the entire body with it. Cancer, the dreaded disease, is of the body's own making and is responsible for one out of four deaths in this country. Cancer occurs when a single body cell becomes unresponsive to the normal controls of the body and the neighboring cells. This results in expansion and growth of similar carcinogenic cells. The malignant (harmful) tumor in

contrast to the benign (harmless) tumor, invades the local tissue and spreads to different parts of the body (metastasis), destroying everything in sight.

What causes a body cell to turn cancerous is not clearly understood. However, many sources which contribute to cancer have been identified (Table 10.1).

TABLE 10.1
MAJOR CAUSES OF CANCER.

Source % all cancer
Cigarette smoking 35
Genetic factors
Radiation
Air pollution
Occupational exposures 10-20
Viruses 5-10
Unknown causes 50-60

The unknown causes, which account for the majority of cancer cases, make this disease especially dreadful and mysterious. Sporadic observations show:

. Mormons, who shun coffee, tea and alcohol, have a much lower incidence of cancer.

. Sexual activity may help prevent prostrate cancer, the theory being that sex hormones built up during abstinence can reduce the immunity of prostate cells to cancerous growth.

. Rancid fats are possible causative agents for colon and breast cancers.

. Burnt and browned meat and fat are highly carcinogenic.

. Sedentary people contract cancer six times more frequently than the physically active.

. There is a clear link between obesity and breast cancer in women. Cancer patients who weigh less than 140 pounds have a 62 percent survival rate five years after breast surgery,
as compared to 49 percent for those patients who are over 140 pounds or overweight according to standard weight height charts.

. A study from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine states that the cancer survival rate is increased in patients who are able to articulate their feelings of anger, fear, and depression. Patients who talked about their emotions outlived by a margin of three to one those who did not. This may have to do with the hormonal levels when negative feelings are suppressed.

. In the year 1900, mortality due to cancer was only 4 percent of all deaths as compared to 25 percent today. In the year 1900, more people died of injuries than from cancer.

. High fiber and low fat diets provide protection against many types of cancers (For additional information on this topic you may call 1-800-4-CANCER, The National Cancer Institute, and ask for their free booklet on nutrition and cancer or write, NCI, P. O. Box K, Bethesda, Maryland 20814. Another excellent reading reference is "Dietary Guidelines for Americans" provided free by the U.S. government. Write to Consumer Information Center, Dept. 622 N, Pueblo, Colorado 81009.

Our environment is full of reasons why body cells should become cancerous. It is surprising that, despite this, only one out of four people develop cancer. Immunity to cancer is attributed to the elaborate defense mechanisms of our body. Cancer cells, being different from normal cells, evoke a protective response causing a rush of fighting blood cells called macrophages, those tiny "Pac-man-like" structures which literally chew up the cancer cells. This is analogous to a blitz at the line of scrimmage during a football game. Any disorder of the body or condition which suppresses the defense system of the body makes us more susceptible to cancer. The majority of cancers of unknown causes can be attributed to this reduced immunity against cancer.

HOW FOOD CAUSES CANCER

Since drug treatment of cancer is not very effective, it would seem more important to prevent the disease from beginning in the first place and with food targeted in five of the nine observations above, it would certainly be prudent to look to our diets.

The food components play opposite roles: they may be carcinogenic themselves or may prevent other components of food from causing cancer. For example, cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage are recommended since they reduce the carcrinogens in our diets. Sources of these potential carcinogens are listed in Table 10.2.

TABLE 10.2
SOURCES OF CARCINOGENS IN FOOD.

Chemical contamination: food processing and packaging, preservatives such as nitrates,environmental contamination. 

Thermal decomposition: charbroiling, breakdown of proteins and fats in cooking. 

Food spoilage: rancid oils, decomposed foods.

Most of the sources identified above can be avoided by careful food preparation and storage. Several food additives such as the antioxidants (chemicals which keep fats from turning rancid such as BHA and BHT) and free radical quenchers (chemicals such as vitamin E which deactivate the highly reactive molecules) are often recommended in cancer prevention therapies. The value of these therapies remains questionable.

Recently, investigators have begun looking into relationships between fat in our diet and cancer. Fat causes cancer by two mechanisms. First, most chemical carcinogens are of the fat soluble type and the more fat we consume, the greater our chance of being exposed to these carcinogens. Second, unsaturated fats reduce the immunity our body has to cancer. Vegetable oils cause cancer by:

. Breaking down to carcinogens (rancid oils are high in carcinogens);

. Increasing concentration of cancer promoting PGs, and

. Reducing body immunity to cancer growth.

It is ironic that the increased consumption of vegetable oils to lower cholesterol levels and heart disease has resulted in substantially increased risks to several types of cancers.

FISH TO THE RESCUE AGAIN

Fish contains high concentrations of vitamin A & D, which have been associated with cancer prevention, the theory being that these vitamins inactivate the cancer-causing free radicals from the body.

Recently, the role of omega-3 fatty acids in the prevention of cancer has been explained. This theory is best summarized in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No. 13.293, Cancer Cause and Prevention Research by the Public Health Service of the U.S. government. In this document, and in scores of scientific publications, it has been observed that the risk of developing cancer at certain sites such as the breast, colon, prostate, pancreas, endometrium and ovary can be reduced by supplementing the diet with fish.

Fish consumption has been correlated with a lower incidence of breast cancer in Greenland and Japan. Greenland Eskimos, whose caloric intake is almost 70 percent fat (mostly whale and fish), have almost no incidence of breast cancer, and in Japan, where the breast cancer rate is the second lowest in the world, 50 percent of the fat intake comes from fish. The total fat intake in Japan is almost 20 percent compared to 40 - 50 percent in America. However, not all types of cancers have low occurrence in the Eskimos and the Japanese. This finding further supports the theory that diet and environment have significant connection with carcinogenicity. As a result, the overall incidence of cancer in Greenland Eskimos is only slightly lower than the Western population. Future studies must identify the sources of other carcinogens in the diet and life of Eskimos to enable us to better utilize components of their diet in preventing the types of cancers most prevalent in our society.

How omega-3 fatty acids in fish help prevent cancer is detailed in Appendix A-9 and Table 10.3. A simple explanation is that omega-3 fatty acids reduce the carcinogenicity of vegetable oils and boost the body defense system against cancerous cells.

TABLE 10.3
HOW FISH PREVENT CANCER

Reduce cancer promoting PGs (such as PGE₂).
Restore body's defense against cancer:
.increased activity of macrophages, the"Pac-Mans" of human body,
.increased concentration of arginase, the "bullets" in macrophages.
.increased production of leukotrienes.
.increase vitamins which inactivate cacner-causing free radicals.

The free-radical fighting properties of fish have additional effects since free radicals are also implicated in aging, heart disease, arthritis, cataracts, senility, dandruff and bruises. Therefore, a fish diet not only protects us from heart disease and hypertension but possibly from cancer and many other diseases.

However, eating fish does not induce any permanent change in the body chemistry. The protective effects of fish last only as long as you continue to eat it. For example, we find that the Japanese who settled in Hawaii and changed their fish-eating habits, increased their risk of cancer. Similarly, the Eskimos who settled in the Netherlands have shown just about same risk of developing cancer as the native Danish population. The transient effect of fish on our body is an added advantage since it allows us to avert any long-term side effects of eating fish or taking fish oil supplements.

Despite the many questions that remain to be answered, there are a number of thing we can do to reduce the risk of developing cancer. These are listed in Table 10.4.

TABLE 10.4
RECOMMENDATIONS TO REDUCE INCIDENCE OF CANCER

Avoid obesity.
Reduce dietary fat, both saturated and unsaturated.
Eat Fish.
Eat more high fiber foods, such as whole grain cereals, fruits and vegetables.
Include foods rich in vitamins A, C and other natural antioxidants in the daily diet.
Include cruciferous vegetables, such as cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kholrabi, and cauliflower in the diet.
Be moderate in consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Be moderate in consumption of salt-cured, smoked, and nitrite-cured foods.
Avoid ultraviolet light exposure such as sun tanning, natural or artificial.
Avoid unnecessary exposure to chemicals.
Stop smoking or chewing tobacco.
Avoid exposure to any types of smoke.
Exercise regularly.
Reduce tension.
Reduce consumption of charbroiled or burnt foods.