PHYSICOCHEMICAL ENVIRONMENT OF THE COLON

Epidemiological evidence suggests that 80-90 % of colorectal cancer is caused by dietary and environmental factors and that the prevalence o f cancer can be altered in low-risk patients by long-term alterations in dietary fibre ingestion. It has therefore become increasingly impor tant to examine the available data on colonic pH and transit, and on f aecal short-chain fatty acids in different groups, in order to establi sh the relationship between fibre intake, colonic acidification and th e predisposition to cancer in different ethnic groups. Eur J Cancer Pr ev 7 (suppl 2): S79-S80 (C) 1998 Lippincott-Raven Publishers.