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Tomatoes, lycopene and prostate cancer: a clinician's guide for counseling those at risk for prostate cancer

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Abstract

Prostate cancer has become a major public health issue and the search for etiologic risk factors and the development of chemopreventive agents has gained momentum over the last decade. An important epidemiologic finding has been the association between the consumption of tomato products and a lower risk of prostate cancer. Several investigators have proposed that lycopene, a carotenoid consumed largely from tomato products, may be the component responsible for lowering the risk of prostate cancer. Laboratory and clinical studies have been initiated with the goal of assessing the ability of pure lycopene to serve as a chemopreventive agent for prostate cancer. The focus on lycopene should continue, and an improved understanding of lycopene absorption, distribution, role in antioxidant reactions, and metabolism is critical in the quest to elucidate mechanisms whereby this compound may possibly reduce prostate cancer risk.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health, 4841 UHC, 456 West 10th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210, USA

    Kamal S. Pohar, Michael C. Gong & Robert Bahnson

  2. Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health, Columbus, OH 43210, USA

    Elizabeth C. Miller & Steven K. Clinton

Authors
  1. Kamal S. Pohar
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  2. Michael C. Gong
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  3. Robert Bahnson
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  4. Elizabeth C. Miller
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  5. Steven K. Clinton
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Correspondence to Kamal S. Pohar.

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Pohar, K.S., Gong, M.C., Bahnson, R. et al. Tomatoes, lycopene and prostate cancer: a clinician's guide for counseling those at risk for prostate cancer. World J Urol 21, 9–14 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00345-003-0318-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00345-003-0318-3

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