The effectiveness of whey proteins in prevention and treatment of cancer: a review.

Cancer prevalence is rising rapidly around the globe, contributing immensely to the burden on
health systems, hence the search for more effective and selective treatments still remains enticing.
Whey, as a natural source, has received extensive focus in recent years because of its intriguing
applications to health benefits. Growing consumer appreciation of the nutraceutical effects of
whey components makes them an attractive field within cancer research. Whey is a valuable source
of superior-quality proteins, lactose, vitamins, and minerals that contribute to proper nutrition as
well as help hamper illness and even complement certain disease-related therapy prognosis. As
a result, industry leaders and dairy producers are devising new ways to valorize it. Great emphasis
on cancer prevention and treatment has been given to whey protein (WP) by the scientific
community. WP intake has been proven to induce anti-cancer effects in various in vitro and in
vivo studies. Nutritionists and dietitians are now enormously endorsing the role of WP in the
therapeutic field, notably for cancer cachexia management. However, human intervention studies
with WP are in their infancy and remain to be established with different tumor entities to provide
valid proof of its ability to act as a coadjuvant in cancer treatment.