Plant Based Health Online: Living with Cancer Plant Based Health Online is using an evidence based message to highlight the benefits of adopting a healthy plant based diet after a diagnosis of cancer.
Following the success of two pilot cancer survivorship programmes earlier this year, the team at Plant Based Health Online have launched further Virtual Group Consultation (VGCs) programmes designed specifically for patients who have breast, prostate and colon cancer. These six week programmes aim to improve cancer survivorship and connect cancer patients with those who have shared similar lived experiences. They have been generously subsidised by the Chartwell Cancer Trust. What healthy habits should people adopt? Although around 40% of cancers are preventable, it is not possible to prevent all cancers. The number of people living with cancer is increasing and there is recognition that we can do more to support patients to live well after a diagnosis. Diet choices, physical activity, avoiding harmful
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substances, good quality sleep and managing stress are all key components of supporting the body and giving yourself the best chance of recovery. There is robust evidence to support a healthy plant based lifestyle for certain cancers - namely breast, prostate and colon cancer. This is why, at Plant Based Health Online, we have chosen to focus our group programmes for patients living with these diagnoses. Breast cancer Breast cancer is now the commonest cancer in the UK and the most common cancer in women globally. 1 in 7 women in the UK will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. Breast cancer is more common in high income countries, in part related to the ‘Western lifestyle’. The genes we inherit are responsible for only 5–10% of breast cancer cases, with the most widely studied genes, BRCA 1&2,
implicated in only 1–2% of cases. In contrast, up to 25% of cases could be prevented by addressing a number of lifestyle-related factors and a healthy plant-based diet and active lifestyle can make a huge difference in prevention, improving outcomes and survivorship. Prostate cancer and the benefits of a plant-based diet Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK. Early stages of prostate cancer often don’t require medical treatment. However, adopting healthy lifestyle habits can be beneficial. A plant-based diet is the only diet that has been shown in a clinical study to arrest and in some cases reverse the early stages of prostate cancer. In a randomised study of 93 patients with early-stage prostate cancer, one group was randomised to a plant-based
