Researchers from the University of East Anglia found that people who ate large amounts of vitamins C and E and the mineral Selenium were 67 per cent less likely to develop the condition than people who consumed lower quantities.
If studies prove that the antioxidants were causing the added protection, the finding could prevent one in 12 cases of pancreatic cancer, 'The Telegraph' quoted researchers as saying.
According to them, the disease is diagnosed in 7,500 people each year and has the worst prognosis of any cancer, with only three per cent of patients surviving for more than five years after diagnosis.
The study, published in the journal 'Gut' used data on almost 24,000 men and women aged 40 to 74, taking into account all the food they ate during a week and how it was prepared.
Researchers found that 25 per cent of people who took in the most selenium