Objective To measure the association between dietary fiber intake and eleven hormones and peptides in postmenopausal breast cancer
survivors.
Methods Intake of fiber from food and supplements was measured two to three years after breast cancer diagnosis in 493 postmenopausal
women from three western states. Concurrently, a fasting blood sample was obtained for assay of estrone, estradiol, free estradiol,
testosterone, free testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), leptin, C-peptide, insulin-like
growth factor-1 (IGF1), and IGF-binding protein-3. Adjusted means of these hormones and peptides were calculated for categories
of fiber intake.
Results High intake of dietary fiber was significantly (
P ≤ 0.05) associated with low serum levels of estradiol and free estradiol and with high serum levels of IGF1. The combination
of high dietary fiber intake and use of fiber supplements was additionally associated with low serum levels of C-peptide.
The magnitude of the difference in hormone/peptide values, comparing high fiber intake to low fiber intake, varied from 16
to 28%, and the associations were independent of multiple confounding variables.
Conclusion High fiber diets may be beneficial to postmenopausal breast cancer survivors due to fiber’s favorable influence on sex hormones
and peptides known to affect breast cancer prognosis.
Keywords Breast cancer outcomes - Dietary fiber - Serum hormones - Serum peptides