Kirklin Farms tomatoes
Sliced heirloom tomatoes from Kirklin Farms are served during a recent Chef's Table at Zazios in Kalamazoo. John Liberty | Kalamazoo Gazette
(John Liberty | Kalamazoo Gazette)
Dr. Cathryn Bock
DETROIT, MI -- A Wayne State University School of Medicine study found postmenopausal women who eat more foods with the antioxidant lycopene, like tomatoes, watermelon and papaya, are less likely to be diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer.
The cancer is the eighth most prevalent among women and with a total of 63,920 new cases in 2014 nationwide represented about 3.8 percent of new diagnoses, based on data collected by the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program.
"We were surprised to observe a protective effect of lycopene, as several previous studies in other populations did not detect a similar relationship," said Wayne State University Professor of Oncology Cathryn Bock, who led the study.
The study analyzed 96,196 women who enrolled in the Women's Health Initiative between 1993 to 1998 and were tacked through 2013.
The study found 240 of the women had been diagnosed with kidney cancer.
"Compared with women who reported a lower intake of lycopene, those who ingested more had a 39 percent lower risk," a statement announcing the results says.
"Lycopene from food sources has also been associated with decreased risk of breast and prostate cancers, and a diet high in vegetables and fruits are generally well-accepted for promoting good health," Bock said, noting that tomatoes and tomato-based products, watermelon, pink grapefruit, guava and papaya are good sources of lycopene.
The findings led to a new, broader National Cancer Institute-funded case-control study being primarily conducted with participants from Metro Detroit.
"This study included a broader population, including both men and women, and with greater representation of African-Americans, and therefore may help describe the associations in populations beyond post-menopausal women who are primarily of European descent," Bock said.