New Development For Treatment in Breast Cancer

In an intriguing report published online in Cancer Research, extracts of a tropical fruit known as bitter melon were found to have ingredients that interfere with the chemical pathways involved in breast cancer growth, offering a potential new treatment in breast cancer. The substance turned off signals that tell breast cancer cells to divide, and switched on signals that encouraged the cell to kill itself instead. In its earliest stage, the work was conducted in the laboratory, not in people or animals, at least not yet.

For the study, the team treated human cancer cells with the bitter melon extract in a laboratory. Researchers found that the extract slowed the growth of breast cancer cells and even killed them.

The bitter melon extract acted only on the cancer cells, not on healthy cells. The next steps will be to reproduce the results in animals. Only then would human trials follow.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, and the second most common cause of cancer death in females in the United States. Both genetics and hormonal factors are believed to be primary risks for the disease.

Treatment depends on your own unique diagnosis and while options have improved over the years, even today patients often develop a resistance to treatments.

The fruit at the center of all this, bitter melon (also known as wild cucumber or bitter gourd) grows naturally in Africa, South America and Asia. The extract has been used in folk medicine as a treatment for diabetes and infections.

This sharp tasting fruit is often a part of Chinese cooking because it adds such a bitter flavor to stir fry, soup or even when drunk as a tea. It's also quite popular throughout India, Nepal, the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia among other nations.

Despite the positive findings from the study, experts don't advise eating lots of bitter melon in hopes of protecting against breast cancer. It's too early for that.

The researchers are hoping that ultimately bitter melon extract might be used as a dietary supplement to keep the cancer from coming back.

The next step will be to conduct trials in animals and eventually humans.

Researchers are directing follow up studies on the effects of the extract on a number of cancer cell lines. They're also working on a preclinical trial to look at the preventive effect if the extract is administered orally.

While waiting for more research results to become available, if you're worried about your cancer risk, you can take steps that have already been shown to help - drink less alcohol, be more active and keep your weight under control.

Getting regular mammograms as advised by your doctor is also an important part of preventative treatment in breast cancer by finding cancers before they get too large or have a chance to spread.


FREE Bonus Secret Health Reports - For a limited time you can grab 5 FREE essential health reports from Daily Health Bulletin and click the link now to discover other new natural treatments in breast cancer that are showing promise in prevention of the disease.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kirsten_Whittaker

0 Response to "New Development For Treatment in Breast Cancer"

Post a Comment