High-fiber, low-fat diet may boost breast ca prevention. (Vitamin E, Fiber Linked to Lower Risks).

ORLANDO, FLA. -- Women whose diets are rich in high-fat meat are at increased risk of developing breast cancer, while those who consume high amounts of fiber and vitamin E are at decreased risk of benign breast disease.

Those conclusions emerged from two separate studies presented at a meeting of the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program.

One study focused on the diets of postmenopausal black women while the other looked at the diets of adolescent women. The studies found that older women who ate less high-fat meat had lower incidences of breast cancer and that young women who consumed more fiber and vitamin E had a lower risk of developing benign breast disease, which may be a precursor marker of breast cancer development.

The case-control investigation into the diets of older black women looked at the eating patterns of 103 mostly low-income black women in Washington, D.C. The women were 55-79 years old, and 34% of them had newly diagnosed breast cancer.

Tanya Agurs-Collins, R.N., of Howard University, examined the women's self-reported annual intake of dairy, fruit, vegetables, and high-fat processed meats like bacon, sausages, and luncheon meats. Women who ate the most high-fat processed meat each year were 10 times more likely to develop breast cancer than were women who ate the smallest amount of those meats.

The women with breast cancer ate an average of 210 servings per year of the high-fat meat, while women in the control group ate an average of 112 servings. When annual consumption was divided into quartiles, 40% of the breast cancer patients fell into the highest quartile (196 ...