Understanding Cancer: Causes, Treatment & Prevention | Drs. Urvi Shah & Neil Iyengar | Ep 254

Different dietary camps often make bold claims regarding the impact of lifestyle on cancer prevention and treatment. Many people diagnosed with cancer will ask themselves whether it is their “fault”, too. We’ve touched on cancer many times on The Proof, but in Episode #254, I sit down with Dr Urvi Shah and Dr Neil Iyengar for the show’s first conversation dedicated to understanding cancer.

👇 Visit The Proof website for supporting studies and the full show notes 👇

Dr Iyengar and Dr Shah both have a keen interest in the role of lifestyle in cancer development and treatment, having recently published a review titled “Plant-Based and Ketogenic Diets As Diverging Paths to Address Cancer*”*. In today’s conversation, we take a closer look at what cancer is, how it develops, and how lifestyle factors come into the picture.

Drs Urvi Shah and Neil Iyengar are board-certified oncologists at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. They are both actively involved in nutrition research, looking at how lifestyle interventions can affect cancer-related outcomes. Dr Shah specialises in treating patients with multiple myeloma, and Dr Iyengar specialises in treating patients with breast cancer. Together, Dr Shah and Dr Iyengar hold a wealth of knowledge on cancer, with both hands-on experience treating patients and as researchers.

In Episode #254, you will learn about pre-cancerous cells, our bodies’ surveillance systems to prevent cancer, and the hallmark features of cancer. This episode is packed with practical information on the intersection between lifestyle factors and cancer: we identify the lifestyle habits that can reduce cancer, treat it, and prevent its recurrence. We also weigh up plant-based and ketogenic diets for cancer treatment and prevention, and the clinical trials currently underway looking at nutrition and cancer.

Specifically, we discuss:

00:00 - Intro
06:51 - Cancer and precancerous cells
20:09 - Genetics and cancer risk
24:33 - Obesity and cancer risk
36:44 - Modifiable factors and reducing recurrence risk
47:34 - The role of nutrition in cancer treatment
51:50 - Plant-based diet vs ketogenic diet
1:13:35 - Dr. Neil investigates the effects of plant-based diets and exercise on breast cancer
1:17:25 - Soy, dairy, protein, and cancer risk
1:31:25 - Unprocessed red meat and colorectal cancer
1:37:42 - Organic foods vs conventional produce
1:41:10 - Ultra-processed food and cancer risk
1:43:42 - Alcohol intake and exercise recommendation
1:50:04 - Strong predictors of breast cancer
1:52:26 - Stress and sleep
1:53:36 - Importance of screening
2:02:39 - Outro

I hope you find this episode’s focus on cancer illuminating. Drs Shah and Iyengar bring an evidence-based yet practical lens to this complex topic, and you will no doubt finish this episode with a better understanding of how to reduce your risk of cancer in the future.

Connect with Dr Neil Iyengar

Connect with Dr Urvi Shah
If you have any additional questions you would like answered in the future, let me know in the comments.

Enjoy, friends.

Simon

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[FranceMarie]

Great episode! Really excited to see quality research looking into diet (and exercise) as part of cancer treatment. As someone fighting this disease I hear all too often patients being told, eat what you want, it doesn't make a difference.Thank you Simon for sharing oncologists Shah and Iyengar's research much needed research. I will be eagerly anticipating the results from these studies!

[heidisunshine]

This was soooo good 👍
As a stage 4 colon cancer survivor, I agree with the points that Simon wanted clarity on…. Love this, learned so much

[agnieszkapozar]

Great topic! Reiterated what my oncologist said in beginning when I was diagnosed and wanted a specific plan- just eat more fruit and vegetables and limit red meat and alcohol. Also exercise! When I don’t feel like it I’ll remember I’m kicking cancer’s butt when I do. It really helps with treatment side effects like fatigue as well.

[kardste]

Excellent coverage of foods affecting cancer growth!!

[benitaenzor]

Fantastic episode!! Simon, you ask really great questions! All of mine were answered. Thank you!

[richwooten]

Always very thorough as usual! I love these deep dives! They provide so much insight into the mechanisms behind our lifestyle choices and how they impact our body. I would love to get a deep dive into sodium/salt in the diet! I feel like there are so many conflicting views on how much people should have and the "Quality" of some salt vs another. 🙏

[wallyrbc]

Wonderful doctors! Thank you to them and to Simon. Once again, I’m not sure what to do about supplements.

[fmfm]

Another informative and very useful video, bravo Simon and thank you for all you are doing!

[sallywolfe]

Another option to a high meat ketogenic diet in the example given is to consider joining medically managed water only fasting prior to chemotherapy that has shown benefit from research by Alan Goldhamer DC and Valter Longo pHD (USC Longevity Institute).

[janice]

What a great episode! Their insights and ability to communicate what we do and do not know yet was incredibly informative and helpful. I have a dear friend recently treated for triple negative breast cancer and this helped address many of our ongoing questions.

[luna_bird]

Why not live with the WFPB lifestyle plus fasting? It seems like the most logical conclusion for cancer prevention. Keto will increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, it is just as dangerous as cancer.

[BlahBlahPoop]

23:00 Yes, the benefits outweigh the risks when it comes to eating fruits and veggies even with pesticides, BUT PLEASE wash your fruits and veggies very well using warm water/soaking methods before eating.

[kathleenbefittwell]

Excellent episode 👏 Such important information!!

[sallywolfe]

A ketogenic diet that increases mTOR might not (from empirical clinical evidence and mechanism in driving growth) be the most logical approach to a y patient with cancer. Raising IGF-1 has clearly been shown to adversely affect cancer survival.

[jellybeanvinkler]

This is one of your more amazing shows, Simon! Sharing far and wide.
Thank you, Doctors.❤❤
Oh, and p.s. Not sure why it is assumed that keto peeps may be too stupid to choose healthy foods within the diet parameters, compared to vegans. I know plenty of plant based ppl who eat crap.
I suffered terrible constipation all my life. Being a vegetarian for years did not help. Now low carb and quite regular.
So some of these assumptions are a bit off base as far as I'm concerned.
Still, a great helpful show.

[kardste]

Great talk! What about phytoestrogens in Flax seeds? Could this be a problem in Estrogen driven Endometrial Cancer? Some say safe to be using 1/2 cup in kale smoothies every day. Good idea for person with Endometrial Cancer or not?

[peterz]

On the issue of glyphosate (~1h38m), I recall that it is supposed to disrupt the gut microbiome.

[jakobw]

So far I have not come across anyone who can properly answer the following point about alcohol consumption:
Isn't ethanol in moderate amounts of course, good because it is both lipolytic and antibacterial and antiviral?

[sallywolfe]

As a plant based retired internist, lipidologist, preventive medicine oriented MD I give accolades as usual to Simon for his efforts in attempting to illicit more than the party line from these two oncologists. My experience from 42 years as a PCP is that oncologists (who earn 60% of their generous income from managing chemotherapy) generally are not at all interested in truly attending to the large body of research that shows in particular a WFPB diet has a clear benefit in prevention, treatment and recurrence of multiple cancers.
Getting these two (more open to ‘new’ information than most in their specialty) are hardly doing more than lil service to this natural approach.
They’re both happy that their colleagues aren’t watching as they will be ostracized otherwise for straying (as weak as this interview demonstrated they are in a dietary approach) from the current oncology philosophical paradigm.

[pattihy]

Isn’t soy milk highly processed and would be bad for cancer