Disclaimer/about us

Thank you for visiting our website, foodforbreastcancer.com. Food for Breast Cancer makes no warranties or representations whatsoever regarding the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or usefulness of any information contained in or referenced on this website. Food for Breast Cancer does not assume any risk whatsoever for your use of this website or any of the information contained herein.

The information found in foodforbreastcancer.com is for general health purposes only. The information and opinions are not to be used as a substitute for medical advice, medical diagnosis or medical treatment of any condition. Questions regarding your own health should be addressed to your own medical doctor or other healthcare provider. Use of this website does not create an expressed or implied physician-patient relationship.

In using this website you agree that neither Food for Breast Cancer nor any other party is or will be held liable or otherwise responsible for any decision made, action taken, or action not taken resulting from your use of any information contained herein.

We recommend consuming a wide variety of foods that have been shown to act against breast cancer and limiting or avoiding foods that have been shown potentially to stimulate it. The overall goal is to bathe our normal cells with nutrients that promote healthy DNA and cell division, and prevent harmful epigenetic changes. Any new breast cancer cells that do arise are to find themselves in an environment that promotes their death and inhibits their proliferation and migration. There are many foods that can help prevent or inhibit breast cancer development and metastasis. Therefore, select a wide variety of foods that you enjoy from the recommended food list and try to avoid the foods that have the potential for harm. All of the foods on both these lists, plus many others for which information concerning breast cancer is available, can be found in the alphabetical list. Please see our article on how to optimize your breast cancer diet for more information.

In addition to web pages covering specific foods, we provide original articles on how food and other factors relate to breast cancer risk and prognosis. For example, we have written reports on topics such as what to eat for various subtypes of breast cancer (e.g., lobular, HER2 positive, triple negative), optimizing the diets and lifestyles of our high-risk daughters, and how type 2 diabetes is related to breast cancer risk, all backed up by peer-reviewed studies. We also provide short write-ups on the latest breast cancer studies. Tags (keywords) are also provided so that those who wish to explore more studies concerning a topic can find links to them.

Our goal is to provide objective information that is supportive of your medical team. We do not subscribe to the idea that promising food- or plant-based cures for breast cancer are being withheld from the public (see No specific foods or diets can cure breast cancer). Generally speaking, the doctors and scientists working on breast cancer research are well-educated, intelligent, conscientious and dedicated to finding effective treatments for breast cancer patients. The same cannot always be said of internet purveyors of breast cancer treatments and cures.

What is the role of Food for Breast Cancer, then? To explain this, we need to start with a summary of how breast cancer research results in chemotherapy treatments. To simplify, first the chemical composition of a promising plant is determined (plants are chosen by researchers based on healing properties ascribed to them in traditional medicine or their similarity to other plants known to have interesting properties, among other reasons). Second, extracts of the plant are tested against human cancer cell lines and in animals to evaluate their anticancer properties. If an extract is found to have chemopreventive, antiproliferative or proapoptic activity, an attempt is made to isolate its anticancer compound or compounds. Population studies may be undertaken to determine whether there is an association between consuming the plant and the risk of breast cancer. Third, once a compound has been found to be effective against breast cancer, it is tested for safety in animals. Fourth, human trials are initiated to test the safety and efficacy of the compound and to establish appropriate dosages. If testing results in approval by the Food and Drug Administration, the compound is manufactured and marketed to oncologists. Studies then continue on an ongoing basis to evaluate the efficacy of the treatment over time and compare its effectiveness to new treatments that arrive in the marketplace.

When entrepreneurs take note of the positive results in the second step described above, produce concentrated plant extracts or plant chemicals in pill, capsule or liquid form and then market them as cancer treatments, there is a potential risk to consumers since the efficacy, safety and appropriate dosage of the products have not been established. It is well known that some plant components that are chemopreventive in low doses or when consumed in the whole plant turn out to be cancer-promoting at higher doses. On the other hand, since many plants have been shown to have anticancer properties (and few of their components are ever developed into treatments), it seems appropriate not to ignore the information.

Food for Breast Cancer is designed to provide breast cancer patients, survivors and those at high risk for breast cancer with information that will help them optimize their diets and lifestyles using the extensive scientific research that is available. Rather than attempting to use individual foods or their components as medicine by taking them in concentrated form, we recommend consuming a wide variety of foods that have been shown to have action against breast cancer and limiting or avoiding foods that have been shown to be potentially harmful.

Food for Breast Cancer articles and news stories are written by G. Sarah Charles, a breast cancer survivor with a mathematics-system science degree from UCLA, including coursework in biostatistics and public health. This background gives Sarah a unique perspective and ability to summarize and evaluate the results of academic studies. Sarah also has an unrelated graduate degree from Harvard. Sarah works with a small team who review news stories, articles, and food pages and perform the programming for the website and associated databases. Of course, the website also benefits from feedback given by visitors. To contact Food for Breast Cancer, leave a message in the Feedback section of the Donate page. We use this somewhat cumbersome contact method to help combat spam emails.

Food for Breast Cancer is primarily a public service. It operates at a significant loss. Some other internet sources of information concerning diet and breast cancer may be influenced by the fact that supplements are sold on the sites. That is not the case for Food for Breast Cancer. Every effort is made to be objective and let the evidence speak for itself. All content is accompanied by relevant academic studies. The website is supported by a private database of more than 23,000 studies.