Researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago and the University of Buffalo have respectively found that soy may be an effective treatment against prostate and breast cancers respectively, reports the Daily Mail.
The Northwestern University study was performed on a small group of 38 men. Researchers found that one pill a day of genistein, an isoflavone found naturally in soybeans, seemed to help slow or stop the spread of prostate cancer.
A study out of the University of Buffalo, meanwhile, looked at almost 1,300 women, evaluating the diets of 683 breast cancer sufferers against those of 611 healthy women. Women with the highest isoflavone intake were 30 percent less likely to have an invasive breast tumour, and 60 percent less likely to have a low-grade tumour.
Both studies are inconclusive and will require follow-up before they can be confirmed. "Still, we definitely saw a reduction that deserves further investigation," said Anne Weaver from the University of Buffalo.