THE USE OF WHEY PROTEIN IN CANCER TREATMENT
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Whey proteins have long been used as a protein source in sports nutrition and clinical nutrition. However, in recent years, various claims have emerged suggesting a possible link between whey protein consumption and cancer. Much of this debate is based on a superficial interpretation of the relationship between protein intake and cellular growth mechanisms. Such a relationship, however, can only be addressed in light of systematically evaluated scientific data.
This article is based on a peer-reviewed systematic review published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences in 2025, which examined the anti-cancer potential of whey proteins. The study was conducted according to PRISMA 2020 criteria; in vitro studies, animal experiments, and a limited number of clinical trials published between 2000 and 2024 were searched in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. As a result, 24 studies examining how whey proteins might exert effects at the cellular and molecular level in different cancer types were analyzed in detail.
This systematic review was prepared as a result of an international and interdisciplinary collaboration between Constantin Brâncuși University of Târgu Jiu in Romania and academics from the Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, Uludağ University, and the Faculty of Medicine, Balıkesir University, both from Turkey. This study, to which Turkish scientists contributed, deserves particular praise for its high methodological standards in addressing the effects of whey proteins on cancer biology.
