Lycopene Supplement Bioavailable to Prostate Tissue

CHICAGOSupplements of lycopene, a carotenoid that has been associated with reduced risk of prostate cancer, showed bioavailability in a recent study of African American men (Cancer Prev Res; 4(5); 7118). Men who received the supplement experienced increased lycopene concentration in the blood and in prostate tissue.

Consumption of tomato products is associated with a decreased risk of developing prostate cancer, and lycopene, the red carotenoid in the tomato, is a potent antioxidant that might contribute to this chemoprevention activity, according to the study authors.

They carried out a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of 105 African American veterans, aged 50 to 83, recommended for prostate biopsy to detect cancer due to a physical abnormality in their prostate. The urology patients were randomly assigned to receive 30 mg/d of lycopene as a tomato oleoresin in two gel capsules or a placebo of soybean oil for 21 days prior to prostate biopsy for possible diagnosis of prostate cancer. A total of 47 men had a diagnosis of prostate cancer, and 58 men had a diagnosis of benign prostate hyperplasia.

For the men receiving lycopene, the mean lycopene concentration increased from 0.74 ± 0.39 to 1.43 ± 0.61 &#956;mol/L in plasma (P<0.0001) and from 0.45 ± 0.53 to 0.59 ± 0.47 pmol/mg in prostate tissue (P=0.005).

According to Richard van Breemen, UIC professor of medicinal chemistry and lead researcher on the study, the new study was the first of its kind to look solely at African American men.  The lycopene approximated the amount that can be ingested daily by eating foods rich in tomato sauce, such as spaghetti and pizza, van Breemen said,

The research was funded through a grant from the National Cancer Institute, one of the National Institutes of Health. Van Breemen will present the research at the 16th International Symposium on Carotenoids in Krakow, Poland, July 17 to 22.