Omega-3 Fatty Acid Protects Against Polyps

By Nancy Walsh, Contributing Writer, MedPage Today Published: March 22, 2010 Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Dorothy Caputo, MA, RN, BC-ADM, CDE, Nurse Planner Action Points   Explain to interested patients that a new formulation of the fatty acid found in fish oil showed promise in the prevention of colorectal cancer in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis, according to a randomized study. Explain that although the study was performed in patients with a genetic predisposition to colorectal cancer, the benefits also might extend to noninherited, or sporadic, colon cancer. But this has not yet been studied. An omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid significantly reduced both the number and size of rectal polyps in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis, a randomized trial found. Six months of treatment with the free fatty acid formulation of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) led to a decrease in mean number of polyps from 4.13 at baseline to 3.61, a 12.4% decrease, according to Nicholas J. West, MBBS, of St. Mark's Hospital in London, and colleagues. In contrast, six months of placebo treatment resulted in an increase from 4.50 polyps at baseline to 5.05, which represented a 9.7% increase, the researchers reported online in Gut.