Soya lowers ovarian cancer risk

Women who eat more soya-based foods than average have a lesser risk for certain cancers in the ovaries and the lining of the uterus.

The uterine lining cancers - also known as endometrial cancer - and the ovarian cancer are all known to be affected by hormones such as estrogen, which are mimicked by compounds in soya. While some soya compounds that act like estrogen are linked to a higher rate of breast cancer, studies have suggested the opposite for endometrial and ovarian cancer.

To look into the associations of soya-based food and the risk of endometrial cancer and ovarian cancer, researchers reviewed seven studies on the same subject. The studies included more than 169,000 women, of whom 3,516 had one of the two cancers. Most of the studies evaluated the intake of soy or soy components from foods such as legumes, soy curd, or soy protein.

It was observed that the risk of developing endometrial cancer and ovarian cancer was 40 percent lower among women who ate the highest amounts of soya-based foods.

The results hint towards protective effects of soy intake on the risk for endocrine-related gynaecological cancers.  However, additional larger prospective studies are needed to further confirm the above findings.