Study to explore impact of dietary change on low-grade PCa

A newly launched clinical trial will assess the impact of a diet low in animal products on the health of men with low-grade prostate tumors.

The multi-site Men’s Eating and Living (MEAL) trial will recruit 450 men with prostate cancer, all of whom will be at low risk for developing advanced disease. All participants will change their dietary intake, but half will undergo more significant shifts in diet.

Research has shown that a diet low in animal products like meat and dairy and high in fruits and vegetables is associated with lower incidence of prostate cancer. MEAL coordinators James Marshall, PhD, and James Mohler, MD, of Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY, and colleagues led a similar 6-month study launched in 2004.

"The MEAL trial promises to be a very strong study based in biological and behavioral changes," Dr. Marshall said. "We’ve shown very convincingly in a pilot study that we can change men’s diets. We can see the progress in diet records, but more importantly, by means of blood-based nutritional biomarkers."

The trial is billed as the first to assess the effects of radical dietary intervention on men with prostate cancer and the only current clinical investigation involving men placed on active surveillance rather than active treatment for low-risk prostate cancer.

To learn more about the MEAL trial, including eligibility criteria, call 877-275-7724 or e-mail askrpci@roswellpark.org.