This book was inspired by a gatheringofscientists in Los Angeles in 1994
under the auspices of the UCLA Clinical Nutrition Research Unit which is
funded by the National Cancer Institute to promote new research into
nutrition and cancer prevention. This unit supports research integrating
basic and metabolic/clinical investigations which examine observations
from epidemiologic studies and their application to the prevention
ofcommon forms ofcancer through nutritional intervention. There is a
great deal ofinformation from epidemiologic, experimental and metabolic
studies implicating elements ofthe diet as important in the development
and progression of common forms ofcancer including breast cancer, colon
cancer, prostate cancer, and uterine cancer. When these forms
ofcancerareexaminedcarefully, it isclearthat they share anumber ofcommon
etiologic factors related to dietary fat, lipids, and hormones. A human
cancer is usually discovered at a point where it has formed a detectable
mass. For many forms of cancer, this may require 10 to 15 years from the
time when the cancer is first initiated. Nutritional efforts at
prevention may delay the progression ofcancer to a detectable mass
resulting in reduced incidence and may retard the clinical progression
and metastatic spread ofcancer after its primary treatment.