Selenium May Reduce Risk of Some Cancers

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Selenium May Reduce Risk of Some Cancers

Washington Post (12/25/96) P. A4

Abstract: A new study, led by University of Arizona epidemiologist Larry Clark, shows that selenium, which is currently being trumpeted as being a treatment for everything from dandruff to AIDS, could reduce the risk for certain types of cancer, including prostate, colon, rectal, and lung. Selenium is a mineral found in seafood, liver, and vegetables grown in selenium-rich soil. The research indicated that, when compared with participants who received a placebo, patients who took daily doses of selenium had 63 percent fewer cases of prostate cancer, 58 percent less colon or rectal cancers, and a 45 percent reduction in lung cancer. However, researchers warned in the Journal of the American Medical Association that the results need to be repeated since the study was originally created to monitor whether selenium could prevent skin cancer- -which it did not--and because 75 percent of the participants were men.

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