Tomatoes can protect people against prostate cancer and may even slow the growth of a tumour, say scientists.

The study was done on mice and researchers found those fed a meal each day consisting of 10 percent cherry tomato powder had lower rates of cancer and survived longer than those mice on a normal diet, reports express.co.uk.

The University of Naples study stated that daily consumption of a tomato-rich diet was highly effective in preventing prostate cancer in mice.

But Joanna Owens, from Cancer Research Britain disagrees and said: 'This study doesn't provide enough evidence that tomatoes can reduce the risk of prostate cancer or prevent progression of the disease in humans.

'Other risks such as age, family history and ethnicity are likely to play a much greater role than diet alone.'