title: Dietary omega-3 polyunsaturated fats and breast cancer.
abstract: Although early experimental investigations concluded that quantitative increases in dietary fat promote mammary tumor growth, recent studies have indicated that not all fatty acid families equally express this tumor-promoting capability. This article provides an overview of some of the experimental evidence demonstrating that the omega-6 polyunsaturated fats have significantly different mammary tumor-promoting capabilities from those of the omega-3 polyunsaturated fats. Collectively, these data indicate that whereas increasing dietary levels of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids enhances tumor development, equivalent increases in dietary levels of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids delay or reduce tumor development. Some of the theoretical mechanisms proposed for these contrasting results and their supporting experimental data are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Endocrine Unit, University of Rochester School of Medicine, New York, USA.
authors.forename: W T
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Cave
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control; D004042:Dietary Fats, Unsaturated / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000627:therapeutic use; D043371:Fatty Acids, Omega-6; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008325:Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control
chemical_list: D004042:Dietary Fats, Unsaturated; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D043371:Fatty Acids, Omega-6; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated