Tocotrienols Associated with Prostate Health

by | Aug 24, 2010 | 2010, Men's Health, Men's Health - Prostate, Tocotrienols

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. In this study of 37 mice who were genetically engineered for prostate cancer, those fed a tocotrienol fortified diet had 53% palpable high-grade tumors compared to 80 % palpable high-grade tumors in the control group.

Prostate cancer is the second most deadly cancer in men (lung cancer is the number one killer). It caused the death of nearly 31,000 men in 2002 (1), with 234, 460 new cases and over 27,000 deaths in 2006. If prostate cancer is found early and has not spread, the 5-year survival rate is 100%. But if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, that survival rate plummets to 34% (2).

A 2006 lab study found tocotrienols, a nutrient similar to vitamin E, to offer “significant promise as a chemopreventive and/or therapeutic agent against prostate cancer” (9). Now a new study (10) has continued to show tocotrienols to help prostate health.

In the study, researchers 37 fed mice genetically engineered to have high rates of prostate cancer (called the TRAMP mouse cell line (11)) with diets that were either not fortified with tocotrienols or fortified with 0.1% (1.7 mg in mice = 1500 mg in humans), 0.3% (5.2 mg), or 1.0% (17 mg) of tocotrienols per day from birth through 24 weeks of age. By the end of 24 weeks, 80%% of those in the placebo group who had tumors had palpable tumors, signifying high-grade tumors. In the 0.1%, 0.3%, and 1.0% vitamin E groups, only (65%, 52%, and 43% of the tumors were palpable tumors, respectively.

Finally, they found the 0.3% and 1.0% (not the 0.1%) tocotrienol groups also significantly increased activity of a tumor suppressor protein called p27 compared to the placebo group (0.1 in the placebo group vs 0.8 in the 0.3% group and 1.2 in the 1.0% group).

For the researchers, “These findings further support the possible use of tocotrienols as prostate cancer chemopreventive agents in humans.”

Source: Barve, Avantika, et al. “Mixed tocotrienols inhibit prostate carcinogenesis in TRAMP mice.” Nutrition and cancer 62.6 (2010): 789-794.

© 2017 Informa UK Limited

Posted August 24, 2010.

References:

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