Summary: There is epidemiological evidence that populations with alkaline stool pH are at greater risk for colon cancer than populations with acid stool pH. This association was investigated in the laboratory using the rat-dimethylhydrazine colon carcinogenesis model. Rats with acid stool pH, produced by consumption of lactulose or sodium sulphate or both, had significantly fewer colon tumours after injections of dimethylhydrazine (DMH) than rats treated with DMH alone. The results confirm the hypothesis that acidification of the stool can protect against the induction of colon cancer. IntroductionIt has been hypothesized that alkaline faecal pH increases the risk of colon cancer (Thornton 1981, Burkitt 1981. We have used the rat-dimethylhydrazine colon carcinogenesis model to test this hypothesis. In rats, the injection of 1, 2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH) induces colon cancers and polyps identical to those found in humans. Stool pH can be lowered directly, without first altering bile flow, bile composition or colonic bacterial flora, through the feeding of lactulose, sodium sulphate or a combination of the two. We therefore set out to determine if fewer tumours were induced in rats given dietary supplements of lactulose or sodium sulphate or both and injections of DMH than were induced in rats treated with DMH alone.

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