CURRY AND BREAST CANCER
Recently I read a story about Vicky
Sewart, a breast cancer patient who refused to take drugs prescribed
to prevent her cancer from returning. She
chose instead to depend on a spicy low-fat diet because she was worried about
the side effects she might have from taking medication. She did her own
research and decided that eating curry would be beneficial for her recovery.
What is the scientific evidence behind this woman’s risky decision? Is it
enough to bet her life on it after going through cancer? I went into doing research
myself, and found several articles, news and reviews about this subject.
Curry and some
other spices like mustard contain a yellow spice called Turmeric or curcumin (Curcuma longa). This spice has been
studied in multiple human cancers including, head and neck, breast, colon,
pancreatic, prostate and ovarian. Some studies even say that the low incidence
of colon cancer in India is due to the chemo-preventive and antioxidant properties
of diets rich in curcumin. Curcumin’s
has potent anti-oxidant effect, which means that it has substances that may protect cells
against the effects of free radicals, and they play an important
role in prevention in the initial stages of cancer. Curcumin’s inhibitory effect
on cancer has been demonstrated
in several animal models of various tumor types including oral cancer, mammary
carcinoma and intestinal tumors with very good effects. A very recent study from Zheijian Provincial People's
Hospital in Zheijiang, China indicates that the compound is
capable of inducing programmed cell death (apoptosis) within triple negative
breast cancer cells.
(Triple negative breast cancer, so named because
the cells do not have the characteristic receptors for estrogen, progesterone
and Her2/neu) According to UCLA
Curcumin was selected for further development,
put through extensive toxicology testing and has successively made it through
the first stages (Phase I) of clinical testing abroad and is currently in
clinical trials at several sites in the U.S.
Overall, turmeric appears to have significant cancer-protective
effects according to scientific evidence, although It is still in Phase I of
clinical testing which means that it has not been tested in humans yet.
According to the National
Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine it is considered safe for
most adults. So if you enjoy Indian cosine you might take advantage
of the antioxidant properties of this spice while enjoying a delicious plate.
Go to your doctor for your medication and, let’s just wait until we come to the
point where we are sure it is safe enough to consume as medicine.
For me who knows little of this type of research, I found this post easy for me to understand. I also feel confident in your knowledge of the topic especially as you state that these are all preliminary findings and to continue listening to our doctors not radically refuse treatment and eat strictly curry the rest of our lives. Because of how well you have written and summarized the research, I am excited for what this study might find and plan to follow it in the future. Thank you for finding the research and for reaching out by explaining your findings with us.
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