Breast cancer research success

Women may be able to reduce their breast cancer risk by taking a nutritional supplement, a researcher from RMIT University in Melbourne has discovered.
The findings have received international recognition, and will be published in the British Journal of Nutrition.
The researcher, Leah Williamson, said it was widely accepted that there are good estrogens that protect against breast cancer, and bad estrogens that increase the risk of a woman developing breast cancer.
Through a study conducted on Melbourne volunteers, Williamson discovered that post-menopausal women could increase their good estrogens by taking a daily dietary supplement containing flaxseed lignans while not affecting any other hormonal risk factors.
“Lignans are naturally occurring substances found in small amounts in foods like whole grains, beans and legumes but, in our modern processed diet, we just don’t eat enough of them,” she said.
Lignans are widely prescribed in Europe, Canada and the US to reduce menopausal symptoms.
Williamson said more research was needed.