ArticleCancer & metabolism2024
A whole food, plant-based diet reduces amino acid levels in patients with metastatic breast cancer.
Article in Cancer & metabolism, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03045289 (Whole-Food, Plant-Based Nutrition Among Women With Metastatic Breast Cancer), which is not on this map. Cited by 4 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Whole-Food, Plant-Based Nutrition Among Women With Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Pilot Study of Recruitment, Retention, and Preliminary Changes in Biomarkers and Symptoms.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Effect of a whole food plant-based dietary intervention on cancer progression and inflammatory markers.The oncologist · 2025Trial
- Amino Acid Metabolism in Health and Disease.MedComm · 2026Review
- Long-Term Dietary Changes and Mortality among Participants of a Whole Food Plant-Based Pilot Study for Metastatic Breast Cancer.Current developments in nutrition · 2026Article
- Amino acid metabolism in breast cancer: pathogenic drivers and therapeutic opportunities.Protein & cell · 2025Review
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11 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAmino acids are critical to tumor survival. Tumors can acquire amino acids from the surrounding microenvironment, including the serum. Limiting dietary amino acids is suggested to influence their serum levels. Further, a plant-based diet is reported to contain fewer amino acids than an animal-based diet. The extent to which a plant-based diet lowers the serum levels of amino acids in patients with cancer is unclear.
methodsPatients with metastatic breast cancer (n = 17) were enrolled in a clinical trial with an ad libitum whole food, plant-based diet for 8 weeks without calorie or portion restriction. Dietary changes by participants were monitored using a three-day food record. Serum was collected from participants at baseline and 8 weeks. Food records and serum were analyzed for metabolic changes.
resultsWe found that a whole food, plant-based diet resulted in a lower intake of calories, fat, and amino acids and higher levels of fiber. Additionally, body weight, serum insulin, and IGF were reduced in participants. The diet contained lower levels of essential and non-essential amino acids, except for arginine (glutamine and asparagine were not measured). Importantly, the lowered dietary intake of amino acids translated to reduced serum levels of amino acids in participants (5/9 essential amino acids; 4/11 non-essential amino acids).
conclusionsThese findings provide a tractable approach to limiting amino acid levels in persons with cancer. This data lays a foundation for studying the relationship between amino acids in patients and tumor progression. Further, a whole-food, plant-based diet has the potential to synergize with cancer therapies that exploit metabolic vulnerabilities.
trial registrationThe clinical trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03045289 on 2017-02-07.
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