The polyunsaturated fatty acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), which has been shown to preserve muscle mass in cancer cachexia by downregulating the increased expression of the ubiquitin–proteasome pathway (Whitehouse et al, 2001), prevented PIF-induced nuclear migration of NF-κB, loss of I-κBα and the increase in proteasome expression (Whitehouse and Tisdale, 2003). This evidence concerns the gene NFKB1 and cancer.