In this study, over 1500 patients underwent baseline colonoscopy to remove existing polyps. They were then given a survey about their diet. After a period of one and then four years later, the group underwent follow-up colonoscopies to determine if any polyps had returned. Those who had consumed diets higher in processed meats showed a greater risk of developing recurrent colorectal adenomas. Those with diets high in certain white meats, like chicken, were less prone to this risk.

???Our results are consistent with prior studies that suggest certain dietary factors may be important in the development of colon polyps and cancer," states Douglas Robertson, lead researcher of the study and Chief of the Section of Gastroenterology at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, Vermont.

Previous studies have explored whether fiber intake effects the growth and development of colorectal adenomas and cancer, however, this study found no significant evidence to suggest an association. The same was determined for dietary intake of fat and red meat.

According to the National Cancer Institute and U.S. National Institutes of Health, colorectal cancer is the third most common type of non-skin cancer in men (after prostate cancer and lung cancer) and in women (after breast cancer and lung cancer). It is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States with more than 57,000 people dying from colorectal cancer each year.

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Klaiber maintains that earlier studies showing that cyclical hormones are protective against heart disease are probably quite valid.

As he says one of the reasons menopausal women were given hormones was because of the gender differential, men have a lot more heart attacks and have them earlier.

Klaiber is optimistic that a multi-center trial launched last year by the Phoenix-based Kronos Longevity Research Institute will eventually show that hormone replacement therapy is not risky in women who are just beginning to go through menopause.

That study will treat women age 40 to 55 with hormone pills, hormones delivered through a skin patch, or a placebo, but those results will not be available until 2010.

Dr. Joseph Sanfilippo, president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, has said that the WHI study makes an important contribution but does not provide a complete answer.

The study is published this week in the journal Fertility and Sterility.