Here are a few interesting items that may be relevant to us myeloma folks, too, especially the first one:
1. A November 2009 study showed that curcumin and piperine inhibit Wnt signaling in breast stem cells. Remember this pathway? (If not, see http://margaret.healthblogs.org/2007/04/27/quercetin-wnt-signaling-pathways-and-myeloma/) Yes, it is involved in myeloma cell proliferation and growth, too. Hmmm, I had forgotten that quercetin inhibited Wnt…I should probably add it to my intake again…
Anyway, an excerpt from the abstract tells us that Curcumin and piperine separately, and in combination, inhibit breast stem cell self-renewal but do not cause toxicity to differentiated cells. These compounds could be potential cancer preventive agents. See: http://tinyurl.com/yz2wb6f
Science Daily provides a good, easy-to-read summary of the study: http://tinyurl.com/ylcfqbc Interesting excerpt: this paper, published online in the journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, is the first to suggest these dietary compounds could prevent cancer by targeting stem cells. The first of many, I hope!
2. According to the most recent Ralph Moss newsletter, four homeopathic remedies cause apoptosis (= kill) breast cancer cells: It was particularly interesting that the cell-killing effects of two of the remedies investigated in this study, Carcinosin and Phytolacca, appeared similar to the activity of paclitaxel (Taxol), the most commonly used chemotherapeutic drug for breast cancer […]. See: http://tinyurl.com/yzu6frk
3. According to a study published earlier this month, parthenolide might reduce breast cancer cell resistance to tamoxifen. See this Science Daily report: http://tinyurl.com/yfod7gp The study abstract is here: http://tinyurl.com/yz88rmy Interesting. Too bad that feverfew didn’t seem to work for me…but I will probably give it another go at some point in the future…
Hi Margaret,
in this relationship with the breast cancer stem cells the following article will be interesting.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061007111543.htm
The Science Daily article “Papaya Extract Thwarts Growth of Cancer Cells in Lab Tests” includes some interesting comments from Bharat B. Aggarwal, Ph.D., a researcher at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and a very big proponent of curcumin. It also relates that he eats some Papaya every day for the potential health benefits. I expect he likes the taste, but if he is committed to a daily serving, he must certainly have some studied reason for doing it. There are lots of tasty alternatives to switch between. The most widely availy extract from the papaya is papain and I believe it is often included in meat tenderizers.