Can vegan diet and HIIT workouts move the needle?

Posted by sulatnasteve @sulatnasteve, Jul 29 12:50pm

Hello! I am so pleased that I found this group. What an incredible wealth of information it contains. Here's my story and I would appreciate any feedback on whether my plan of action sounds like a good one. My name is Steve, i'm 69 years old, and weigh 180 pounds and an 6'. In February I had a yearly check-up and my doc saw that my PSA was 3.9. He drew some blood and did a K4test, They came back with a PSA of 4.8 and a 8.3 which put me at 9.6%chance of aggessive prostate cancer. He suggested that I see a urologist and see what he thought. The urologist said to come back in September and get another PSA test. I asked if we could get an MRI and he thought that would be unnecessary. After the appointment, my doctor asked me how it went and he said that if the urologist won't order the MRI, than he would. The MRI came back with a gland size of 5.5 x 5 x 4.5 A PSA density of .136
There is a far left apex lesion measuring 0.8 x 0.8 DWI score 4 CCE negative T2 score 3 PI-RADS 4
impression:
The pI-RADS 4 sub centimeter lesion is in the far left apex peripheral zone. No visualized seminal involvement or definite extra-capsular disease.
I went back to the urologist and he thought it probably wasn't cancer but he would do a biopsy. Here is the important part of the results.
Part 6- Prostate left medial apex, core needle biopsy: Prostatic adenocarcinoma, Gleason 3+4=7 (grade group2) involving 40% 0f 1 of 3 cores. All other cores were ok.
We then did a Decipher test and it came back .46 which is .01 away from the high point of low risk. (.45)
I meet the urologist again and he told me just go home and live your life. You can do Active Surveillance and in September we will recheck PSA and in March he would do a follow up biopsy and another MRI. I asked about diet and exercise which I had been reading could help the situation but he did not think I could do anything that would change the outcome. I spent hours and hours reading everything I could and decided that i would up my exercise to HIIT workouts as well as really step up an already very active life and I would also transition to a vegan diet since everything I found showed that plant based diets could have an impact on PC. I began the diet on May 18th and i'm doing great on it, obviously missing meat, cheese and dairy but if it changes the picture I will be pleased. I lost 15 pounds and leveled out at 180.
I have 2 questions for this group - First, do you agree that active surveillance is the way to go with this small lesion and second do you think the diet and exercise program can have an effect on lowering PSA and possibly shrinking the tumor? I sure appreciate your time and insight!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Prostate Cancer Support Group.

Profile picture for drcopp @drcopp

Hi Jeff:
Here's the video that talks about the harm that fried and grilled cooking methods does to hydrolyze the cholesterol in the foods. Starts at the 1-minute mark of this one: https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-ultra-processed-foods-could-cause-disease-industrial-contaminants/ Cancer producing byproducts-AGE's advanced glycation products...bad boys.

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@drcopp
I thought the problem might be with fried or grilled. I never eat it that way. I don’t think the risk is there with it being baked. Those high temperatures are what makes it more dangerous.

Thanks for responding with the information you’ve provided.

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Here's a fuller answer about the high heating effects, taken from the chatbot from their site, not necessarily prostate cancer causing, but still not good for us:
High-temperature cooking methods like baking, broiling, frying, and grilling dramatically increase the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) — also known as glycotoxins or gerontotoxins. These are age-accelerating toxins implicated in nearly every age-related disease, from diabetes and Alzheimer's to kidney disease and cataracts. AGEs crosslink our proteins together, causing tissue stiffness, oxidative stress, and inflammation.

Here's the key: AGE formation is heat-dependent. At our body temperature (~100°F), the Maillard reaction — where sugars bond irreversibly with proteins — is exceedingly slow, taking weeks or even years. But when we crank up the heat to 200°F, 300°F, or 400°F? That reaction goes into overdrive. Dry cooking methods like baking can generate 10 to 100 times more AGEs than wet methods. When muscle cells rupture under dry heat, highly reactive compounds combine with blood and body sugars to form AGEs within the meat.

Now, here's what's surprising: high-fat and protein-rich foods create more AGEs than starchy or sugary high-carbohydrate foods. So it's not just about sugar — it's about what's being heated and how. Look at the numbers: a boiled potato has just 17 AGE units per serving, while potato chips have 865 and fast-food fries over 1,500. Canned corn? 20 units. Corn chips? 151. Corn Pops cereal? 373.

The good news is that switching from baking, broiling, frying, or grilling to boiling, poaching, stewing, or steaming can decrease our AGE intake by 40 to 50 percent. So the cooking method matters enormously — wet heat is our friend when it comes to keeping these gerontotoxins in check.

Learn more here:

How Ultra-Processed Foods Could Cause Disease: Industrial Contaminants

How Not To Age – Live Presentation

Glycotoxins

How Not To Hurt

Ultra-Processed Foods

How Not To Age

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A lot has been written about the substance TMAO. It seems that this single metabolite - produced by eating animal and poultry proteins - is practically a death sentence for all who consume it.
One ‘nutritional’ website claims that TMAO raises your risk of heart attack, stroke and cancer by ridiculously high percentages; and your chances of suffering fatal events can occur soon after eating foods which produce it.
If these numbers were accurate, no one would survive past age 25…if that!
As for chicken being 4X as deadly as meat, where is the study conducted over a 10 year period in which 50% of the subjects ate only poultry and the other half only red meat?
We need to know how these conclusions were drawn; numbers can be deceptive, misinterpreted or seen rosy or poor in the eye of the beholder.
Phil

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Profile picture for drcopp @drcopp

Hi-good discussion. I use NutritionFacts.org, a non-profit organization that specializes in nutrition- here's what their chatbot answered:
The best available evidence points to a whole food, plant-based diet centered around fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes (chickpeas, lentils, beans, tofu). In a landmark randomized controlled trial, Dr. Dean Ornish and colleagues appeared to slow, stop, and even reverse the progression of early-stage prostate cancer with just such a diet — no chemo, no surgery, no radiation. After one year, the subjects' bloodstreams were nearly eight times better at suppressing the growth of cancer cells, and biopsies showed a downregulation of critical cancer genes.

So what should we eat more of? Tomatoes, broccoli-family vegetables, soy foods, and flax seeds have all been associated with decreased prostate cancer risk. And what should we cut back on? Meat, dairy, eggs, poultry, and refined carbohydrates have all been linked to increased risk. In fact, men with more aggressive cancer who regularly ate chicken and turkey had up to four times the risk of prostate cancer progression — even worse than red meat! Eggs showed a significant twofold increased risk of progression as well.

The good news is, regardless of whether we elect chemo, surgery, or radiation, we can always improve our diets. A prostate-healthy diet is a breast-healthy diet is a heart-healthy diet is a body-healthy diet.

Learn more here: see nutritionfacts.org site and search for these videos-

Reversing Early-Stage Prostate Cancer Progression with a Plant-Based Diet and Lifestyle Program

Treating Advanced Prostate Cancer with Diet: Part 2

Too Much Soy May Neutralize Benefits

Prostate vs. Plants

Carnitine, Choline, Cancer, & Cholesterol: The TMAO Connection

Treating Advanced Prostate Cancer with Diet: Part 1

How Not To Die

How Not To Age

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@drcopp This is quackery? Ornish is a nut case.

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Profile picture for papamark @papamark

@drcopp This is quackery? Ornish is a nut case.

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@papamark He’s not really a nut case if you read what he advises:
Mostly plant based diet - which means you CAN eat meat, just not everyday like many do…
And exercise moderately with whatever form suits you - running, walking, weight lifting - but not at Olympic levels.
This ‘regimen’ was followed unconsciously for hundreds and hundreds of years by people all over the planet; you get up, you work, you harvest, you hunt, you pick berries and nuts -and get a good night’s sleep…no magic, no book, no fancy supplements, no TikTok influencer needed.
Are you gonna totally avoid cancer, heart disease and dementia? Probably not - we’re still human after all and have to die from something.
Phil

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Only if your Active Surveillance is happening at a Center of Excellence then it is worth it. My husband’s urologist totally messed up his Active Surveillance. It in fact was In active surveillance. He didn’t even do a repeat biopsy according to NCCN guidelines. He did his second biopsy 4 years after the first one. By that time his Gleason score became 9 (high risk) from Gleason 6 (the first biopsy). He made many more mistakes and I hold him responsible for my husband’s Gleason 9.
Anyway, the other important thing to do is to educate yourself a lot so that you know what your urologist doesn’t know or is not paying attention to.

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Profile picture for ambika @ambika

Only if your Active Surveillance is happening at a Center of Excellence then it is worth it. My husband’s urologist totally messed up his Active Surveillance. It in fact was In active surveillance. He didn’t even do a repeat biopsy according to NCCN guidelines. He did his second biopsy 4 years after the first one. By that time his Gleason score became 9 (high risk) from Gleason 6 (the first biopsy). He made many more mistakes and I hold him responsible for my husband’s Gleason 9.
Anyway, the other important thing to do is to educate yourself a lot so that you know what your urologist doesn’t know or is not paying attention to.

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@ambika
Mine and your husband probably had the same Urologist - the similarities are eerie - actually almost identical 😢. I do not know how doctor's like that sleep at nigh ....
I try so hard not to hate him but it is really, really hard. Because of him my husband might die of this cancer even though he was on AS for so many years. I will never get over that fact and will never forgive that incompetent and careless charlatan.

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Profile picture for surftohealth88 @surftohealth88

@ambika
Mine and your husband probably had the same Urologist - the similarities are eerie - actually almost identical 😢. I do not know how doctor's like that sleep at nigh ....
I try so hard not to hate him but it is really, really hard. Because of him my husband might die of this cancer even though he was on AS for so many years. I will never get over that fact and will never forgive that incompetent and careless charlatan.

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@surftohealth88
Best way to hold him accountable is to file a grievance in his medical system or in the state medical board. It will also help other prostate cancer patients going to him for treatment from becoming his victims. I will do that.
Also write honest reviews about him so that other patients stay away from him. I always wished to connect with someone who had similar experience. I am glad to have heard from you.
Gouri

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I am so very sorry. I very much appreciate you both sharing. And I feel like I have now made a good decision to go to the Fred Hutch cancer center in Seattle to a Dr that specializes in Active surveillance. It’s something that I have thought about since I got diagnosed and hearing your stories make me think I made the right decision.

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