Pomegranate Juice Inhibits Prostate Cancer

MADISON, Wis.--Pomegranate juice appears to have preventive and therapeutic effects on prostate cancer, according to an October 2005 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (102, 41:14813-14818, 2005). Researchers from the University of Wisconsin evaluated the antiproliferative and proapoptotic properties of pomegranate fruit extract (PFE) in mouse skin using human prostate cancer cells.

The study results found the treatment of PFE on highly aggressive human prostate cancer cells resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of cell growth/cell viability and induction of cancer cell apoptosis. Researchers concluded, "Pomegranate juice may have cancer-chemopreventive as well as cancer-chemotherapeutic effects against prostate cancer in humans."