Is There A Prostate Cancer diet?

When you’re being treated for cancer, it’s more important than ever to eat right and get adequate nutrition — but it can also be more difficult than ever to adhere to a balanced cancer diet. Your body is working overtime to fight the cancer, while it’s also doing extra duty to repair healthy cells that may have been damaged as a side effect of treatments like chemotherapy and radiation. At the same time, many cancer treatments — especially chemotherapy — come with side effects that drain your strength and sap your appetite. So how can you make sure you’re getting all the essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals you need to keep a balanced cancer diet?

1.Participate in regular exercise. Walking is best.
2.Limit your calorie intake. Excess calories are bad for cancer growth. Eat what you need to get to the next meal, not the usual American style of eating all you can as if you are never going to eat again.
3.Get sunshine daily. Darker-skinned people need more sunshine.
4.Don’t follow these or any guidelines to excess. Moderation is the key.
5.Heart healthy is prostate healthy. Heart disease is still the No. 1 killer, even in men with prostate cancer.
6.Variety in the foods you eat is important. Increase the diversity.
7.Remember supplements are supplements. They are not intended to replace an intelligent diet; their purpose is to supplement an intelligent diet. Supplements are a poor alternative to eating foods that are high in the desired nutrients.
8.See a doctor regularly for early detection and preventative care. Be proactive rather than reactive.

Nutritional Recommendations
The two diets known to be associated with longevity and reduced risks for prostate cancer are the traditional Japanese diet and a Southern Mediterranean diet. The Japanese diet is high in green tea, soy, vegetables, and fish, as well as low in calories and fat. The Mediterranean diet is high is fresh fruits and vegetables, garlic, tomatoes, red wine, olive oil, and fish. Both are low in red meat.

Specifically, you should incorporate these principles when reevaluating your daily diet:

1.Reduce animal fat in your diet. Studies show that excess fat, primarily red meat and high-fat dairy, stimulates prostate cancer to grow.
2.Avoid trans fatty acids, which are known to promote cancer growth. These are high in margarines, and fried and baked foods.
3.Increase your fresh fish intake, which is high in the very beneficial alpha omega-3 fatty acids. Ideally eat cold-water fish such as salmon, sardines, mackerel, and trout, at least two to three times a week. The fish should be poached, baked, or grilled (not burned or charred). Avoid fried fish.
4.Significantly increase your fresh fruit, herb, and vegetable consumption daily. Powerful anticancer nutrients are being discovered regularly in colorful fruits and vegetables, fresh herbs, leafy green vegetables, nuts, berries, and seeds.
5.Avoid high-calcium diets, which have been shown to stimulate prostate cancer growth.
6.Take a multivitamin with B complex and folic acid daily.
7.Avoid high-dose zinc supplements.
8.Increase your natural vitamin C consumption — this includes citrus, berries, spinach, cantaloupe, sweet peppers, and mango.
9.Drink green tea several times each week.
10.Avoid excess preserved, pickled, or salted foods.
11.at red grapes, drink red grape juice, or red wine regularly.
12.Eat leafy dark-green vegetables frequently.
13.Cruciferous vegetables are cancer protective. These include cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower.
14.Tomatoes and especially tomato products are very high in lycopene, a powerful anticancer substance. This includes pizza sauce, tomato paste, and ketchup.
15.Avoid flax seed oil. This can stimulate prostate cancer to grow. You can obtain the very healthy alpha omega-3 fatty acids you need through fresh fish and nuts.
16.Use olive oil, which is very healthy and rich in vitamin E and antioxidants. Avocado oil is also good. Avoid oils high in polyunsaturated fats such as corn, canola, or soybean.
17.Take vitamin E, 50 to 100 IU of gamma and d-alpha, only with the approval of your doctor. Some recent studies have raised concerns over serious risks with vitamin E intake. Natural sources include nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocado oil, wheat germ, peas, and nonfat milk.
18.Selenium is a very powerful antioxidant and the backbone molecule of your body’s immune system. Most studies support a daily selenium supplement of 200 micrograms a day. The benefits appear to be only for those who have low selenium levels, which is difficult and expensive to measure. Since it only costs about 7 cents a day and is not toxic at these levels, it is reasonable for all men to take selenium. Natural sources include Brazil nuts, fresh fish, grains, mushrooms, wheat germ, bran, whole-wheat bread, oats, and brown rice.

WebMD expert and urologist Sheldon Marks, MD, shares his thought on how men can help prevent prostate cancer through nutrition.

“Check In” Program After Robotic Surgery

As part of our ongoing effort to give our patients the highest quality care along with superior patient to doctor communication, we have developed an email based postoperative program. Questions regarding your postoperative progress are addressed daily with immediate feedback. These emails will:
* Provide important patient education/information
* Answer post-procedure questions
* Guide you through your post-op course
* Alert your doctor of a potential concern

Below are patient responses after completing the Check In Program.
< “I think the online follow up care is excellent. It makes me feel connected to the doctor”.

“From a patient perspective, it’s a good program. It conveys a sense of concern from the doctors and addresses immediate concerns, which change day to day, of the patient”.

“like the extra help”.

“does a good job of telling us what is going on”. Thanks

“very good, keep up the great work”.

“I like having a way to communicate with Metro Urology on a daily basis after surgery. Maybe a place to ask a simple question would be nice”.

“very good tool for educating patients”

“It is very helpful to be able to check in every day. It has answered a lot of questions I have had since surgery”

“I feel great. Went to the golf club today and hit two buckets of balls. Full swing and full hip turn. Planning on playing 18 holes on Fri, Sat, and Sunday”

“I find it helpful”

“Good program. Helps patients for answers when they may be asking “geez is this normal”. And should help MetroUrology improving its care of patients. Happy to participate”

“I have found it very helpful and reassuring! The answers reassure me that what I am experiencing are to be expected”

“I love everything about this program”

“So beneficial and helpful with what to expect at a particular time . Very comforting !! Thank You”

“Keep this program, the info and feed back is needed, and appreciated”

“I think this is amazing program and makes me feel comfortable with everything . Metro Urology rocks!!!”

“well done”

“This is a very good idea, if a patient is having a symptom of concern this website has a reason for it and it helps curb the concern”

Prostate Cancer Facts

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness month. It’s important to be aware of the symptoms and treatment options for prostate cancer so you can detect and treat it as early as possible.

What is Prostate Cancer?

Prostate cancer starts in the prostate gland, which is a small, walnut-sized structure that is part of the man’s reproductive system. Though there are some cases of prostate cancer that are more aggressive, prostate cancer usually grows slowly and remains confined to the prostate gland.

Symptoms of Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer in its early stages might not cause noticeable symptoms. As it becomes more advanced, it may cause symptoms including:

  • Discomfort in the pelvic area
  • Blood in both semen and urine
  • Difficulty urinating
  • Pain in lower back
  • Pain in hips or thighs
  • Light stream of urine

Treating Prostate Cancer

Treatment options for prostate cancer depend greatly on the stage the cancer is at. The stages of prostate cancer include:

  • Stage I – During this stage, the cancer isn’t considered aggressive. During this stage, your physician may decide that treatment isn’t necessary and may choose to simply monitor the cancer.
  • Stage II – Cancer at this stage may still be considered aggressive. It may be larger and may involve both sides of the prostate gland.
  • Stage III – The cancer has spread from the prostate gland to other nearby tissues.
  • Stage IV – During stage IV, the cancer has spread to nearby organs, such as the bladder or lymph nodes.

Depending on the stage of the prostate cancer, your physician may choose radiation therapy, hormone therapy, surgery to remove the prostate, chemotherapy or immunotherapy.

Saint John’s Hospital Receives 5-Star Rating for Robotic Prostatectomies

Healthgrades, the leader in helping consumers make informed choices about healthcare providers, recently awarded Saint John’s Hospital a 5-Star rating for prostatectomies. Both Dr. Gaertner and Knoedler perform most of their robotic prostatectomies at St. Johns.


Due in part to the large volume of their robotic practice, St John’s is one of only sixteen hospitals in the country to be in both the “Top 100” for robotic procedures for both Urology and Gynecology.

To see all the Healthgrade ratings for St John’s Hospital [Click Here].