Tag Archives: TNBC

Neural Stem Cells and cancer

August 13, 2014

Scientists Use Neural Stem Cells To Treat Triple Negative Breast Cancer

Neural Stem CellsBreast cancer has caused lots of fear in women throughout the world. It is one of the most common cancers that are sending our ladies back into their early graves earlier than they ought to. This is a type of cancer that has continued to depopulate the world and rob us of our mothers and sisters leaving behind orphans and widowers.  There is another type of breast cancer that is not known to many but it is the most dangerous than the breast cancer many people are aware of. This breast cancer is known as Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). Triple negative breast cancer is the most difficult cancer to treat as these cancer cells are very resistant to drugs. These cancer cells do not have the characteristic receptors for estrogen, progesterone and Her2/neu that are normally targeted by most cancer treatment alternatives. Even the conventional cancer treatments like chemotherapy only serve to make the cancer cells more and more resistant. This makes it very hard to treat a patient with Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) as most treatments especially the conventional cancer treatments target these receptors that are missing in the cells. Without these receptors such treatments do not work completely and this only result in making the situation worse as chemotherapy will only lead to increased levels of free radicals in the body of the patient. The treatments must target receptors to work well. For instance Tamoxifen targets estrogen receptors, in absence of estrogen receptors Tamoxifen cannot work in cancer treatment. For this reason, TNBC is considered the most aggressive, the most likely to be treated with less-targeted (and therefore more toxic) forms of chemotherapy, and the soonest to return when treatment fails. This therefore means that other alternatives must be used to ensure that the Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is treated so that ladies are not condemned to death when they are diagnosed with this disease.

Effective in treatment of TNBC

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) has put doctors on endless pursuit of its cure. However most of the doctors have proposed the use natural herbs, vegetables and fruits as they are rich in anti-cancer properties that can help to fight Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) more effectively. One of the treatments methods that researchers have proposed is the use of neural stem cells.

Karen Aboody, M.D built a platform at city of hope that is now being used by Mooney, Ph.D. who is a postdoctoral CIRM Scholar and a colleague in Aboody’s laboratory to find out how these stem cells can be used to ferry chemotherapy drugs into the breast cells to curb metastasis of the breast cancer. The platform that these doctors are using involves the use of neural stem cells that naturally reach the cancer tumors in the body. In fact cancer stem cells play a vital role in cancer, metastasis. Their approach to killing the cancer cells involves modifying these neural stem cells to secrete an enzyme that activates a benign substance that powerfully works as a cancer killing agent in the tumors.

The use of neural stem cells in fighting the cancerous cells is good ideas as the stem cells will obvious make even the most resistant breast cancer cells to be destroyed. In this pursuit for better cancer treatment by use of the neural stem cells Dr. Mooney is working together withJacob Berlin, PhD to make this platform a cancer targeting delivery systems for nanoparticles which are essentially plastic containers that are ten thousands times smaller than the width of a single human hair. The doctors are using these plastic transporters to ferry the chemo drugs by filling them with the chemotherapy drugs and having them attached to the neural stem cells that thereafter transports them to the tumor sites. This treatment is very effective since the neural stem cells even pass through the blood -brain barrier reaching even tumors that might have spread to the brain. As the neural stem cells reach the tumor they release the chemotherapy drugs that are packed in the plastic vessels which kill the tumors.

The research on the use of the neural stem cells in fighting cancer has been promising so much that Mooney was awarded two-year postdoctoral cancer research fellowship awarded by the Ladies Auxiliary to the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States to focus specifically on breast cancer metastases. This shows that this treatment is effective and may soon be the best option recommendable to breast cancer patients.

“Cancer cells are very dynamic and elusive, mutating so quickly our current drugs cannot find or fight them, by using a living cell to deliver drugs, it can respond to environmental signals in the body – like inflammation – to track the tumors.” said Mooney. She earned her doctorate from the University of Colorado at Boulder and is studying business at Keck Graduate Institute.

Neural Stem CellsThe builder of this platform; Aboody has shown that the neural stem cell are very effective in treatment of some types of brain cancer such as glioma which is characterized by rapid growth and metastasis. This discovery is yet to make the treatment of Triple negative breast cancer more effective.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Scientists Use Neural Stem Cells To Treat Triple Negative Breast Cancer

 

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Phytomedicine In Cancer Treatment

August 12, 2014

Phytomedicine and DIM Can Effectively Be Used In Triple Negative Breast Cancer Treatment

phytomedicinePhytomedicine refers to the application of scientific research and the highest standards of professionalism to the herbal medicine practice. The use of phytomedicine is not new though. It has been in practice for quite a long time in fact  the name phytomedicine is derived from the word used in other parts of Europe, where plant based medicines are provided by doctors and pharmacists as ‘phytomedicine’ to their patients. Phytomedicine is more advanced in herbal medicine as it involves scientific research to ascertain the potency of the natures given herbals before they are prescribed to be used by any patient. The doctors who use phytomedicine are called phytotherapists and they treat their patients with the best herbs that fit their king of diseases. Phytotherapists choose the best herbs from the most effective herbs ensuring that very patient get the best combination of the phytomedicine.

Phytomedicine is practiced in clinical treatment of diseases in most parts of the world and is a growing field as it involves scientific research and information on the use of plant medicinal components and their safety in use. There are methods that are used to evaluate the effectiveness of plant medicines which are similar to the evaluation of orthodox medicine. Herbs unlike the orthodox medicine that focus on given chemicals contain very many bioactive components. The phytomedicine may involve use of a combination of herbs to come up with a therapy that will heal the body and strengthen its immune system to fight diseases better.

Phytomedicine are safe for use for many diseases and cancer is no exception. After very many clinical trials of phytomedicine the use of phytomedicine in treatment of various conditions have been recognized in most countries through the world. Section 12 (1) of the 1968 Medicines Act permits Phytotherapists to make and dispense herbal remedies to individual patients following a consultation.

As used in cancer treatment, Phytomedicine involves selection of plant medicines to stimulate or strengthen the body’s own functions and immune system, hence support the body to heal itself. The phytotherapist knows that each cancer patient is a unique individual and hence diagnoses and assesses the needs of the cancer patient uniquely. The patient will thereafter be given a prescription of combined plant products that work best in healing them.

Some of the natural plants components that have been used in phytomedicine to treat cancer include; resveratrol, saponins, silymarin, curcumin, peach compounds, green tea extracts, coffee enemas and grape seed extracts. These phytomedicine are rich in anticancer properties and are even safer for use in cancer treatment. The use of chemotherapy in cancer treatment may fail to work and if chemotherapy is done repeatedly the tumors only become more resistant to the drugs that are supposed to be killing them. The scientists have found out that the use of natural products work better in cancer treatments as they target multiple pathways thereby inhibiting growth and spread of the cancer cells in the body. Some of this phytomedicine help in killing cancer cell by inducing apoptosis in tumors.

EGCG and GSE are two popular plant extracts that have attracted much attention in recent years due to their antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticarcinogenic, and anti-inflammatory properties.

Triple Negative Breast Cancer

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most difficult cancer to treat as these cancer cells are very resistant to drugs. These cancer cells do not have the characteristic receptors for estrogen, progesterone and Her2/neu. This makes it very hard to treat a patient with Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) as most treatments especially the conventional cancer treatments target these receptors that are missing in the cells. Without these receptors such treatments do not work. For instance, Tamoxifen targets estrogen receptors, in absence of estrogen receptors Tamoxifen cannot work in cancer treatment. For this reason, TNBC is considered the most aggressive, the most likely to be treated with less-targeted (and therefore more toxic) forms of chemotherapy, and the soonest to return when treatment fails. For Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) target therapies are not the best options for treatment.

Today it is approximated that between 15-25% of all breast cancer cases are triple negative. Being that the conventional cancer treatments cannot be used in treatment of Triple negative breast cancer it is important to seek effective treatment through other means. Phytomedicine can effectively be used in treatment of Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) as it works better here than any other target therapies.

DIM

Recent research has shown that diindolylmethane (DIM) promotes production of beneficial interferon gamma by breast cancer cells. With reference to scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, the anticancer effect of DIM is evident as the interferon gamma is known to play an important role in inhibiting the development of primary tumors. It has also been proven that DIM increases cellular stress response pathways in breast, prostate and cervical cancer cells. The increase of cellular stress increases the vulnerability of cancer cells to destruction. Studies have shown that DIM induces apoptosis in both breast and prostate cancer cells.

PhytomedicineAccording to a study done by Scientists at Wayne State University School of Medicine, DIM affects the functions of genes that control carcinogenesis, cell survival, and physiologic behaviors. It also inhibits the growth of new blood vessels that are necessary for spread and growth of tumors. In a the study that was conducted by University of California, Berkeley it was found that DIM inhibited angiogenesis on both cultures assays as well as animal models. It is therefore effective and can be used in treatment of Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC).

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Phytomedicine and DIM Can Effectively Be Used In Triple Negative Breast Cancer Treatment

 

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Curcumin and triple negative cancer

August 7, 2014

   Curcumin Is a Triple Negative Cancer Treatment Compound

curcuminCancer doctors and researchers have always done a great job in trying to find us the best treatment to this disease. This is not because there are no cancer treatments that work but because some of the most common conventional cancer treatments like chemotherapy radiation therapy and surgery have left some loophole that needs to be filled for cancer treatment to be effective and safe for all cancer patients. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy have been used for a long time in cancer treatment. However they focus on killing of cancerous by poisoning them. When done the chemotherapy drugs not only kill the cancerous cells but also kill the healthy body cells that are vital for optimum body functioning . This leads to many side effects that make cancer treatments a very painful ordeal. Several cancer patients have died after chemotherapy because of the severe side effects that it is associated with.

Today we have very many alternative cancer treatments thanks to the tireless researchers and cancer doctors who have continued to do research on better cancer treatment alternatives. The researchers have availed varied cancer treatments alternatives ranging from dietary manipulations to natural cancer treatments. Use of natural cures of cancer treatments have since gained popularity due to their availability and cost effectiveness. Another reason that has seen cancer patients seeking natural cancer treatment alternatives is because of the facts that they are devoid of the life threatening side effects that most conventional cancer treatment methods are always associated with. Use of fruits and vegetables are popular today and are sought after as some of the most effective cancer treatment methods worldwide. Some of the diets that have been proposed to work best in cancer treatment involve the use of these fruits and vegetables. The Gerson’s therapy is one of the most famous alternative cancer treatments that have been used in cancer treatment. Researchers have also been able to discover compounds that are effective in fighting cancer in some of these fruits and vegetables. Recently researchers found that a compound in the peach fruit helped in fighting cancer. However peaches are not the only fruits that have been promoted as effective alternatives to cancer treatment. Berries among other fruits are part of the long list. One of these naturally occurring compounds that help in fighting cancer is curcumin. Curcumin is an effective component in turmeric.

Curcumin

Curcumin is a compound in Turmeric. Turmeric is a member of the ginger family, turmeric has been highly valued for its many medicinal abilities, among most of its medicinal abilities is that it is very effective in reducing inflammations. Turmeric is a common spice to Indians who value it for its health benefits. Curcumin is the most active component of turmeric.  Curcumin is effective in reducing inflammations. It exerts its anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting the enzymes and prostaglandins that are essential for inflammation. Curcumin has not only been promoted as an anti-inflammation agent but several studies have proved that it helps in cancer treatment.

Not long ago researchers at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas conducted a research that involved dividing 45 patients with rheumatoid arthritis into three groups. One group received curcumin, the second group was given a standard rheumatoid arthritis drug and the third group was given both. After eight weeks, both the group who took curcumin alone and the group that got both the drug and the spice had a greater reduction in symptoms such as joint swelling and pain compared with those who only took the drug devoid of curcumin. It was also noted that those who were on the curcumin did not suffer any side effect as was the case with those who were under the standard drugs. The findings of this research is pointer that curcumin can help in cancer treatment as inflammation is a feature in cancer.

A new research study done by researchers from Zheijian Provincial People’s Hospital in Zheijiang, China shows that a compound in turmeric known as curcumin, which gives the spice its characteristic saffron-like color, has the ability of inducing  cell death, also known as apoptosis within triple negative breast cancer cells.

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most difficult cancer to treat as these cancer cells are very resistant to drugs. These cancer cells do not have the characteristic receptors for estrogen, progesterone and Her2/neu. This makes it very hard to treat a patient with Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) as most treatments especially the conventional cancer treatments target these receptors that are missing in the cells. Without these receptors such treatments do not work. For example Tamoxifen targets estrogen receptors, in absence of estrogen receptors Tamoxifen cannot work in cancer treatment. For this reason, TNBC is considered the most aggressive, the most likely to be treated with less-targeted (and therefore more toxic) forms of chemotherapy, and the soonest to return when treatment fails. For Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) target therapies are not the best options for treatment.

Today it is approximated that between 15-25% of all breast cancer cases are triple negative. This statistics remind us of other treatments that can best work in cancer treatment. Unfortunately those bodies that are known to create awareness on Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) are only focused on raising money for a pharmaceutical cure that is yet to be made. Curcumin can effectively be used in treatment of Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) as it works better here than any other target therapies.

CurcuminTriple negative breast cancer (TNBC) can be treated best in integrative cancer centers such as AWAREmed where all the possible cures will be put to use to ensure that the disease is fought and won.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

   Curcumin Is a Triple Negative Cancer Treatment Compound

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