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Plant-based diet, inflammation biomarkers and body composition among women with breast cancer: the Pathways Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 May 2025

En Cheng Open the ORCID record for En Cheng [Opens in a new window] ,
Chi-Chen Hong ,
Isaac J. Ergas ,
Bette J. Caan ,
Marilyn L. Kwan ,
Janise M. Roh ,
Ting-Yuan David Cheng ,
Nitika J. Sharma ,
Joseph R. Hanson  and
Hans Minderman
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En Cheng
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA Cancer Epidemiology, Prevention and Control Program, Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
Chi-Chen Hong
Affiliation:
Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Isaac J. Ergas
Affiliation:
Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
Bette J. Caan
Affiliation:
Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
Marilyn L. Kwan
Affiliation:
Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
Janise M. Roh
Affiliation:
Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
Ting-Yuan David Cheng
Affiliation:
Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
Nitika J. Sharma
Affiliation:
Flow and Immune Analysis Shared Resource, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Joseph R. Hanson
Affiliation:
Flow and Immune Analysis Shared Resource, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Hans Minderman
Affiliation:
Flow and Immune Analysis Shared Resource, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Haiyang Sheng
Affiliation:
Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Song Yao
Affiliation:
Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Neil M. Iyengar
Affiliation:
Breast Medicine Service, Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
Christine B. Ambrosone
Affiliation:
Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Lawrence H. Kushi
Affiliation:
Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
Elizabeth M. Cespedes Feliciano*
Affiliation:
Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton, CA, USA
*
Corresponding author: Elizabeth M. Cespedes Feliciano; Email: elizabeth.m.cespedes@kp.org
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Abstract

The World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research recommend a plant-based diet to cancer survivors, which may reduce chronic inflammation and excess adiposity associated with worse survival. We investigated associations of plant-based dietary patterns with inflammation biomarkers and body composition in the Pathways Study, in which 3659 women with breast cancer provided validated food frequency questionnaires approximately 2 months after diagnosis. We derived three plant-based diet indices: overall plant-based diet index (PDI), healthful plant-based diet index (hPDI) and unhealthful plant-based diet index (uPDI). We assayed circulating inflammation biomarkers related to systemic inflammation (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hsCRP]), pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α) and anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-4, IL-10, IL-13). We estimated areas (cm2) of muscle and visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue (VAT and SAT) from computed tomography scans. Using multivariable linear regression, we calculated the differences in inflammation biomarkers and body composition for each index. Per 10-point increase for each index: hsCRP was significantly lower by 6·9 % (95 % CI 1·6%, 11·8%) for PDI and 9·0 % (95 % CI 4·9%, 12·8%) for hPDI but significantly higher by 5·4 % (95 % CI 0·5%, 10·5%) for uPDI, and VAT was significantly lower by 7·8 cm2 (95 % CI 2·0 cm2, 13·6 cm2) for PDI and 8·6 cm2 (95 % CI 4·1 cm2, 13·2 cm2) for hPDI but significantly higher by 6·2 cm2 (95 % CI 1·3 cm2, 11·1 cm2) for uPDI. No significant associations were observed for other inflammation biomarkers, muscle, or SAT. A plant-based diet, especially a healthful plant-based diet, may be associated with reduced inflammation and visceral adiposity among breast cancer survivors.

Keywords

Plant-based dietInflammationBody compositionBreast cancer

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
British Journal of Nutrition , Volume 133 , Issue 10 , 28 May 2025 , pp. 1309 - 1319
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Nutrition Society

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Footnotes

†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

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