Herbal supplement to prevent prostate cancer?

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Herbal supplement to prevent prostate cancer?

21/09/2004 - Columbia University Medical Center has launched the first

clinical trial of a possible herbal preventative for prostate cancer.

 

The phase I study will determine whether Zyflamend, a herbal

supplement commonly used as an anti-inflammatory, can prevent prostate

cancer in patients with prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN).

 

PIN - meaning that the top layer of cells or epithelial cells of the

prostate are dividing more rapidly than normal epithelial cells - is a

clinical precursor for prostate cancer.Without intervention, men

diagnosed with PIN have a 50 to 70 per cent likelihood of developing

prostate cancer.

 

" Zyflamend has shown the ability, in vitro, to reduce prostate cancer

cell proliferation by as much as 78 per cent and to induce cancer cell

death or apoptosis, " said Aaron Katz, principal investigator of the

study. " These results are exceptionally promising and have led us to

initiate this clinical trial. "

 

The herbal, made by the nutritional supplements manufacturer New

Chapter, is composed of 10 herbs – including rosemary, turmeric,

ginger, holy basil, green tea, hu zhang, Chinese goldthread, barberry,

oregano, and Baikal skullcap - that inhibit the cyclooxygenase-2

(COX-2) inflammation pathway. Long-term chronic inflammation

contributes to carcinogenesis in many organ systems (the origin of

certain cancers); inhibiting this pathway appears to be key to

preventing cancers like prostate and colon cancer.

 

A herbal supplement may inhibit this pathway without causing the

adverse gastrointestinal side effects associated with the long-term

use of other COX-2 inhibitors. The preparation of this supplement

differs from many herbal products in that it is not standardized to

isolated chemicals. It delivers herbs in concentrated form, but the

herbs retain their " food " status.

 

" We know more people are using herbal supplements as either their

primary treatment or in tandem with their prescribed therapies, which

is why it is important to study the safety and efficacy of herbal

therapies, " said Mark Blumenthal, founder and executive director of

the American Botanical Council.

 

The Phase I study will evaluate the safety and tolerability of the

herbal supplement in patients with PIN. Up to 48 men, between the ages

of 40 and 75, will receive the herbal supplement three times a day for

18 months.

 

Prostate cancer is one of the biggest cancer killers in industrial

countries and affects more than 500,000 men worldwide every year. This

number is expected to increase with the ageing population.

 

In the US it is known that at least a quarter of all prostate cancer

patients use alternative therapies, such as green tea.

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