title: The effect of dietary omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on T-lymphocyte subsets of patients with solid tumors.
abstract: The effect of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) on the immune system seems to be beneficial. There has been a number of studies concerning the effect of dietary omega-3 PUFA on different immune parameters. The aim of our present study was to investigate the effect of dietary omega-3 PUFA on T-cell subsets and natural killer (NK) cells of patients with solid tumors. We studied 20 patients with solid tumors who received 18 g fish oil/day for 40 consecutive days. We detected a significant increase in T-helper/T-suppressor cell ratio 40 days into omega-3 supplementation, due mainly to a decrease in the number of suppressor T cells. We concluded that dietary omega-3 fatty acids may have a beneficial effect on the already compromised immune system of patients suffering from solid tumors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Patras University, Medical School, Greece.
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Gogos
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ginopoulos
authors.forename: N C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Zoumbos
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Apostolidou
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kalfarentzos
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004032:Diet; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3