Fish Oil and Cancer

Can fish oil be used to treat or prevent cancer?

What are the effects of fish oil on cancer? Can this nutritional supplement prevent cancer or will it increase your risk for it?

Fish oils are an excellent source of the omega 3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Numerous studies have proven these healthy fats offer anti-inflammatory effects and may reduce your risk for heart disease and other health conditions.

With the growing popularity of nutritional supplements, you may be wondering what effects fish oil has on cancer. Will this supplement protect you from getting cancer? Can you get cancer from taking too many fish oils?

Research on Fish Oils and Cancer

There are isolated studies on fish oil and cancer showing a particular group of patients may have experienced some positive results. But there are also a large number of studies where no effect was seen at all.

What's needed is a large scale study that takes a broader look at all the data to get an overall viewpoint on this topic....

A group of researchers at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (a division of the U.S. Department of Health) conducted an in-depth study on the effects of omega 3 fatty acids and fish oil on cancer, tumor growth and cancer treatments.

Over 4834 studies were screened; 1210 of these studies were reviewed and 356 articles met their criteria for this review.

Researchers looked at studies involving omega 3 fats and the incidence of different cancers:

• Breast Cancer - one study showed omega 3 fatty acids increased the risk for cancer and three studies reported a decreased risk.

• Colon Cancer - one study showed a significantly decreased risk; seventeen other studies showed no association at all.

• Lung Cancer - one study showing omega 3's caused an increased risk for cancer and another with a decreased risk. Four other lung cancer study results were not significant.

• Prostate Cancer - one study with an increased risk and one study showing a decreased risk; fifteen other studies revealed no association at all.

Researchers concluded:

"A large body of literature spanning numerous cohorts from many different countries and with different demographic characteristics does not provide evidence to suggest a significant association between omega 3 fatty acids and cancer incidence. Dietary supplementation with omega 3 fatty acids is unlikely to prevent cancer."

Below is a summary of the results from this study.

Results of Omega 3 Fatty Acids & Fish Oil Cancer Study

• Omega 3 fatty acids and fish oil do not appear to reduce your risk for cancer.

• Omega 3 fatty acids and fish oil do not appear to have any significant effect on cancer surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy. Researchers also found no effect on weight loss or overall nutrition.

• Omega 3 fatty acids do not appear to have any effect on the immune system in cancer cases.

• Some animal studies show fish oils may prevent or reduce the risk for tumors of the colon, breast, prostate and pancreas.

• Taking fish oil does not increase your risk for cancer.

If you would like more detailed information on this review, you can access the complete study at the National Library of Medicine right here.

Does this mean fish oils won't reduce your risk for cancer?

Fish oils offer many health benefits

Researchers believe this may be true. However, there are animal studies showing fish oils may prevent or reduce the risk for tumor growth of certain cancers.

Whether this can be applied to people remains to be seen as more studies will be needed before researchers can make any definite conclusions.

Research has shown that fish oils are generally safe and do not cause cancer.

However, there is the possibility you may experience fish oil side effects including diarrhea, upset stomach and a reduced risk for blood clots. These side effects may be caused by taking excessively high dosages of fish oils and can be avoided by decreasing the dosage or stopping their intake completely.

Fish oils may not prevent cancer but it's proven the omega 3 fatty acids in fish oils reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease, lower inflammation in the body, and provide an essential source of healthy fats.

With this in mind, there is still a place for fish oils in a healthy lifestyle and for those seeking to improve their heart health.

Research References: