Inhibition of mammary tumorigenesis by a reduction of fat intake after carcinogen treatment in young versus adult rats.

The present study demonstrates that a reduction of fat intake after dimethylbenz[alpha]anthracene (DMBA) administration to female Sprague--Dawley rats leads to an inhibition of mammary tumorigenesis. Animals were fed a 20% fat diet from weaning and were transferred to a 0.5% fat diet 0, 2, 4, and 6 weeks after carcinogen treatment. In rats given DMBA at 50 days of age, the following observations were obtained: (a) tumor incidence, as well as tumor yield, was decreased when the transfer to a low fat diet was initiated up to 4 weeks after DMBA; (b) regardless of fat intake, over 90% of tumors developed in all dietary groups were adenocarcinomas. This was in contrast to rats given DMBA at 150 days of age. In this case (a) a 50% reduction in tumor incidence was apparent when the low fat diet was introduced even 6 weeks after DMBA intubation; and (b) more benign lesions were found and an association between a reduced risk of carcinogenesis and a lower ratio of adenocarcinoma to fibroadenoma seems to exist. Thus, the data demonstrate that the rats were less vulnerable to delays in reduction of fat intake on subsequent inhibition of mammary tumorigenesis than if they were exposed to the carcinogen at an older age.