FACT CHECK: Can pomegranate protect you against cancer?

CLAIM:

The viral reel claims that eating pomegranate can help fight cancer by slowing the growth of cancer cells. It further suggests that pomegranate is particularly beneficial for people with prostate cancer and may also have protective effects against breast, colon and skin cancers, recommending that people eat one pomegranate every day.

FACT:

Current evidence does not support the claim that eating pomegranate can prevent, treat or stop the growth of cancer in humans. While pomegranate contains compounds that have shown anti-cancer effects in laboratory and animal studies, human clinical trials have produced mixed or inconclusive results. Experts recommend including pomegranate as part of a healthy diet, but emphasise that cancer risk is best reduced through an overall healthy lifestyle, not any single food.  

In a viral Instagram reel, Dr Tarang Krishna, a homoeopathy practitioner with over 7.33 lakh followers on Instagram, claims that pomegranate can help fight cancer.

According to his website, Dr Tarang "completed his under-graduation in Medicine and Surgery from Pune, India and did his MD (Hom) from Agra University, India." He then went on to do his PhD in Oncology "from a prominent cancer institute of the United Kingdom." He now runs the popular Cancer Healer Centre, which focuses on "complementary and alternative medicine, with Immunotherapy (CAM) as a cornerstone," to treat cancer. (CAM), with immunotherapy as a cornerstone of its approach to cancer care.

In the reel, Dr Krishna describes pomegranate as "the enemy of cancer cells" and calls it a "super fruit" with the power to stop the growth of cancer cells. He says it is particularly beneficial for people with prostate cancer, claiming that studies have shown pomegranate juice can slow the doubling time of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a marker often used to monitor prostate cancer progression. He further states that pomegranate contains polyphenols and phenylethylamines that help slow cancer cell growth.

According to Dr Krishna, the potential benefits of pomegranate are "not limited to the prostate." He claims that research has also shown promising results in breast, colon and skin cancers, before advising viewers to eat one pomegranate every day. "It has good fibre... this is regular food. It is very helpful as a fibre," he says.

The reel has gained more than 1.6 million views and over 50,600 likes on Instagram.

What research says

Early research into pomegranate and cancer, particularly prostate cancer, generated interest after small studies suggested it might slow disease progression. However, larger and more rigorous clinical trials have produced mixed results, and there is currently no conclusive evidence that eating pomegranate can prevent or treat cancer.

A 2015 clinical trial involving 183 men with recurrent prostate cancer evaluated whether pomegranate juice or extract could slow the rise of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a marker used to monitor prostate cancer progression. Although PSA doubling time increased in both the pomegranate and placebo groups, researchers found no statistically significant difference between the groups. The authors concluded: "Compared with placebo, pomegranate extract did not significantly prolong PSADT in prostate cancer patients with rising PSA after primary therapy." They noted that while a subgroup of men with the MnSOD AA genotype appeared to benefit, "this finding requires prospective hypothesis testing and validation." 

This means that while pomegranate appeared promising initially, it did not perform better than a placebo in slowing prostate cancer progression in the overall study population. 

Subsequent evidence has largely reinforced these findings. A 2017 review of clinical trials on pomegranate and prostate cancer examined studies involving men on active surveillance, those with biochemical recurrence after treatment, and patients with advanced disease. The review found that while early phase II trials of pomegranate juice and extract showed an increase in PSA doubling time, the larger placebo-controlled phase III trial failed to demonstrate a significant benefit. The authors concluded that "Pomegranate juice and extract are safe but did not significantly improve outcomes in BCR patients in a large placebo-controlled trial." They added that any apparent benefit in patients with the MnSOD AA genotype requires further investigation.

The US National Cancer Institute (NCI) also notes that pomegranate contains several biologically active compounds, including ellagitannins and punicalagins, which have demonstrated anti-cancer effects in laboratory studies. According to the NCI, pomegranate juice and its components can "inhibit the proliferation of various prostate cancer cell lines in vitro", while studies in rodents have shown a reduction in tumour growth. However, the institute emphasises that although an early clinical study reported a longer PSA doubling time among men consuming pomegranate juice, "a phase III placebo-controlled trial of pomegranate juice and extract did not show a significant increase in PSADT."

Research on other cancers remains largely confined to laboratory and animal studies. A 2017 review examining pomegranate's role in cancers including breast, skin, lung and colon cancer concluded that pomegranate and its extracts exhibit anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative and anti-tumour properties in experimental models by influencing multiple molecular signalling pathways. However, the review primarily summarised preclinical evidence and did not establish that these effects translate into clinical benefits in humans.

More recent experimental studies have reported similar findings. A 2023 laboratory and animal study found that pomegranate fruit extract promoted cancer cell death through oxidative stress pathways, reduced tumour growth in mice, and inhibited the migration of triple-negative breast cancer cells. However, these findings were based on cell cultures and animal models, meaning they cannot be directly applied to humans.

Likewise, a 2025 narrative review concluded that pomegranate extracts show promising anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative and anti-tumour effects across several experimental cancer models and suggested they may have potential as future therapeutic agents. However, the authors based their conclusions largely on preclinical studies, and the review did not provide evidence that consuming pomegranate prevents or treats cancer in people.

Similarly, a 2025 systematic review evaluating pomegranate extract in breast cancer analysed 15 eligible studies and found that most reported anti-tumour effects through various cellular and molecular mechanisms. The authors concluded that "pomegranate extract can have antitumor properties on breast cancer" but stressed that "more investigations are needed to validate this hypothesis." Notably, the evidence reviewed consisted predominantly of laboratory studies rather than human clinical trials.

What experts say 

According to Dr Sneha Kommineni, Consultant – Medical Oncology, Aster RV Hospital, Bengaluru, pomegranate contains naturally occurring compounds such as polyphenols, ellagic acid and punicalagins, which have demonstrated antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in laboratory research. She said these compounds have shown anti-cancer effects in test-tube and animal studies, but cautioned that these findings should not be interpreted as evidence of effectiveness in humans.

"At present, there is no strong clinical evidence that eating pomegranate or drinking its juice can prevent cancer or stop cancer cells from growing in people," she said. While pomegranate can be part of a healthy, balanced diet, "it should not be considered a treatment or guaranteed method of cancer prevention."

Dr Kommineni emphasised that no single food can protect against cancer. "Risk reduction comes from the overall pattern - avoiding tobacco, limiting alcohol, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, eating varied plant-based foods, taking recommended vaccines and undergoing age-appropriate cancer screening," she said. She added that "promising laboratory findings should not be mistaken for proof in people," advising people to enjoy pomegranate as part of a varied diet rather than relying on its juice or supplements as a substitute for cancer screening or prescribed treatment.

Addressing claims related to prostate cancer, Dr Kommineni said that although early studies suggested pomegranate juice might increase prostate-specific antigen (PSA) doubling time, later and better-designed clinical trials have produced mixed or inconclusive findings. She explained that changes in PSA levels do not necessarily translate into slower tumour growth or better survival. "Currently, there is not enough evidence to recommend pomegranate juice as a treatment for prostate cancer," she said.

Commenting on claims involving breast, colon and skin cancers, Dr Kommineni said that most of the positive findings come from laboratory and animal studies. While these studies suggest pomegranate extracts may reduce inflammation and slow the growth of certain cancer cells, "human clinical trials are still limited, and the available evidence is not strong enough to confirm that pomegranate can prevent or treat these cancers," she said.

On the recommendation to eat one pomegranate every day, Dr Kommineni said it is a healthy dietary choice because it provides fibre, vitamins, antioxidants and other beneficial plant compounds. However, she stressed that “there is no convincing evidence that pomegranate alone reduces cancer risk, and that cancer prevention depends on an overall healthy lifestyle rather than any single food.”

This story is done in collaboration with First Check, which is the health journalism vertical of DataLEADS