Increasing daily intake of EPA, the omega-3 PUFA analogue of arachidonic acid, alters the balance between the cell content of these fatty acids. This results in reduced production of the more active inflammatory/tumourigenic products of arachidonic acid metabolism. This is supported by the results of recent work at St George's Hospital Medical School, London. In patients with a history of colonic adenomas, daily dosing with a highly purified, free-fatty acid form of the EPA produced a significant reduction in cell proliferation and increase in apoptosis in the colonic mucosa. This preparation of EPA has the proprietary name "Alfa" and is referred to here as EPA.