Condition

Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer develops when cells in the prostate gain mutations, evade the immune system, and rewire their metabolism. Hormone-lowering medicines have the strongest research, and trials found degarelix and triptorelin brought testosterone to very low levels in nearly all men, with degarelix doing so within days. Supplement evidence is thinner: flavonoids reached only moderate support, and vitamin E showed no clear difference in cancer deaths.

Sources: PMID 22748873; PMID 27939836

Supplements studied: 6
Medicines and peptides: 5
Graded outcomes: 23
Trials: 8
People studied: 101,884

Evidence by supplement

Strong
Moderate
Limited
Very limited

6 supplements

Lycopene

Lycopene: outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Grade	Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies	People	Studies list
	Cancer Markers Positive effects on cancer markers in 93% of clinical trials (25/27)	Improves (the measure goes down)	Small effect		1,500 people

Sulforaphane

Sulforaphane: outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Grade	Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies	People	Studies list
	PSA Levels Modest effect in early-stage prostate cancer	Improves (the measure goes down)	Small effect		80 people

Punicalagins

Nitric Oxide: improves
Estrogen
Prostate-Specific Antigen: improves

Punicalagins: outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Grade	Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies	People
	Nitric Oxide Small Increase	Improves (the measure goes up)	Small effect		46 people
	Estrogen No effect		NoneNo effect		46 people
	Prostate-Specific Antigen	Improves (the measure goes up)		2 studies	138 people
Studies that measured prostate-specific antigen Phase II study of pomegranate juice for men with rising prostate-specific antigen following surgery or radiation for prostate cancerClin Cancer Res · PMID 16818701 A randomized phase II study of pomegranate extract for men with rising PSA following initial therapy for localized prostate cancerProstate Cancer Prostatic Dis · PMID 22689129
	Oxidative Stress Biomarkers	Improves (the measure goes down)			46 people
	Prostate Cancer Risk	Improves (the measure goes down)			138 people
	Testosterone	Improves (the measure goes up)			46 people

Curcumin

Erections
Prostate-Specific Antigen: improves
Prostate Cancer Risk: improves

Curcumin: outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Grade	Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies	People
	Erections No effect		NoneNo effect	1 study	97 people
Studies that measured erections A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to evaluate the role of curcumin in prostate cancer patients with intermittent androgen deprivationProstate · PMID 30671976
	Prostate-Specific Antigen	Improves (the measure goes up)		1 study	97 people
Studies that measured prostate-specific antigen Combined inhibitory effects of soy isoflavones and curcumin on the production of prostate-specific antigenProstate · 2010 · PMID 20503397
	Prostate Cancer Risk	Improves (the measure goes down)			97 people
	Prostate Cancer Symptoms	Improves (the measure goes down)			97 people
	Quality of Life	Improves (the measure goes up)			97 people
	Testosterone	Improves (the measure goes up)			97 people

Vitamin E

Cancer Mortality
Prostate Cancer Risk: improves

Vitamin E: outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Grade	Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies	People
	Cancer Mortality No effect		NoneNo effect		29,133 people
	Prostate Cancer Risk	Improves (the measure goes down)		4 studies	100,199 people
Studies that measured prostate cancer risk Effect of selenium and vitamin E on risk of prostate cancer and other cancers: the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT)JAMA · PMID 19066370 Prostate cancer and supplementation with alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene: incidence and mortality in a controlled trialJ Natl Cancer Inst · PMID 9521168 Vitamin E and the risk of prostate cancer: the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT)JAMA · PMID 21990298 and 1 more on the Vitamin E page

Creatine

Muscle Mass: improves

Creatine: outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Grade	Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies	People	Studies list
	Muscle Mass	Improves (the measure goes up)		5 studies	30 people
Studies that measured muscle mass The Effects of Creatine Supplementation Combined with Resistance Training on Regional Measures of Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.Nutrients · PMID 37432300 The Effect of Creatine Supplementation on Resistance Training-Based Changes to Body Composition: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.J Strength Cond Res · PMID 39074168 Effects of creatine supplementation on nutritional status, muscle function and quality of life in patients with colorectal cancer--a double blind randomised controlled trialClin Nutr · PMID 16701923 and 2 more on the Creatine page

Prescription medicines and peptides studied, for context

These are not supplements. Most need a prescription, and some are research compounds with no approved use. They are listed so the supplement evidence above can be read against them.

5 medicines and peptides

Degarelix (Firmagon)

Disease Control: improves
Testosterone Suppression: improves
PSA Suppression: improves

Degarelix (Firmagon): outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies
Disease Control Pooled analysis of 5 RCTs confirms non-inferior disease control. Better S-ALP control suggests improved bone metastases management.	Improves (the measure goes up)	Large effect	17 studies
Testosterone Suppression Phase III: 97.2% achieve T ≤0.5 ng/mL. 96% castrate by day 3 (vs 0% leuprolide). Fastest testosterone suppression among ADT options.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	14 studies
PSA Suppression Median PSA significantly lower at days 14 and 28 vs leuprolide (p<0.001). Faster PSA decline than GnRH agonists.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	14 studies
PSA Progression-Free Survival Extension trial showed statistically significant PSA PFS benefit for degarelix over leuprolide with 27.5-month median follow-up.	Improves (the measure goes up)	Moderate effect	14 studies
Flare Prevention No testosterone flare by design (antagonist mechanism). Eliminates need for antiandrogen flare protection therapy.	Improves (the measure goes up)	Large effect	14 studies

Triptorelin (Trelstar)

Overall Survival: improves
Testosterone Suppression: improves
PSA Suppression: improves

Triptorelin (Trelstar): outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies
Overall Survival 9-month survival significantly higher than leuprolide (97.0% vs 90.5%; p=0.033). Low nadir testosterone associated with improved OS (p<0.001).	Improves (the measure goes up)	Large effect	17 studies
Testosterone Suppression 97.5% achieve castrate testosterone by day 29. Mean T of 12.8 ng/dL from month 2-12. Most potent GnRH agonist with lowest mean testosterone levels.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	11 studies
PSA Suppression Median PSA reduced by 96.4% at 12 months. Real-world data shows reduction from 117.9 to 8.5 ng/mL at 6 months.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	11 studies

Leuprolide (Lupron)

Disease Progression: improves
Testosterone Suppression: improves
PSA Reduction: improves

Leuprolide (Lupron): outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies
Disease Progression Palliative treatment slows disease progression and improves quality of life in advanced prostate cancer.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	17 studies
Testosterone Suppression Achieves castrate testosterone levels (<50 ng/dL) in 98%+ of patients. 6-month depot maintains suppression throughout treatment period.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	15 studies
PSA Reduction Significant PSA reduction in advanced prostate cancer. Comparable efficacy to bilateral orchiectomy in clinical trials.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	15 studies

Goserelin (Zoladex)

Overall Survival (Prostate): improves
Testosterone Suppression: improves
PSA Suppression: improves

Goserelin (Zoladex): outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies
Overall Survival (Prostate) 10-year OS 42.6-86% neoadjuvant, 87% adjuvant to prostatectomy, 49% absolute survival adjuvant to radiotherapy.	Improves (the measure goes up)	Large effect	14 studies
Testosterone Suppression Achieves T ≤50 ng/dL in 1 month, ≤20 ng/dL in 3 months. Lower testosterone escape rates compared to some GnRH agonists.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	10 studies
PSA Suppression Maximum benefit in PSA suppression among GnRH agonists. 82% objective response rate in metastatic disease.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	10 studies

Histrelin (Vantas/Supprelin)

Testosterone Suppression: improves
PSA Suppression: improves
Long-term Castration: improves

Histrelin (Vantas/Supprelin): outcomes studied for Prostate Cancer
Outcome	Effect	Size	Studies
Testosterone Suppression 100% achieve T ≤50 ng/dL by week 4. Mean testosterone 13.1 ng/dL sustained over multiple years. 99-100% maintain castrate levels for 52 weeks.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	9 studies
PSA Suppression PSA decreased 90% from baseline (83.6 ng/mL) by week 16 (p=0.0001). Sustained suppression over multiple treatment cycles.	Improves (the measure goes down)	Large effect	9 studies
Long-term Castration T <30 ng/dL maintained in 96% at 2 years, 100% at 3-5 years. Single implant maintains castration for up to 30 months.	Improves (the measure goes up)	Large effect	9 studies

Key findings

Cancer MarkersLycopeneImproves (the measure goes down)
PSA LevelsSulforaphaneImproves (the measure goes down)
Nitric OxidePunicalaginsImproves (the measure goes up)

The Prostate Cancer (Prevention & Support) protocol

2 primary supplements · 4 supporting supplements

Lycopene15–30 mg daily
Green Tea Extract (EGCG)400–800 mg EGCG daily

See the full protocol

Studies cited

1 study from PubMed

The effect of flavonoid and subclasses supplementation on prostate specific antigen, hormonal parameters and prostate cancer risk: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Arch Ital Urol Androl · PMID 40247729

Evidence by supplement

Prescription medicines and peptides studied, for context

Key findings

The Prostate Cancer (Prevention & Support) protocol

Studies cited

Related conditions

Supplement stack for Prostate Cancer