Milk thistle may slow lung cancer
A compound of milk thistle plant can slow the progression of lung cancer, according to tests conducted on laboratory mice.Like every year 174,000 Americans are diagnosed with lung cancer, your case is the most important. Get the latest information on treatment and management of the name you trust.
The study showed no side effects with doses of silibinin in mice tested. How did it work?
Milk thistle is sold in the United States as a dietary supplement. It is sometimes called silymarin, which is a mixture of active components in milk thistle, silibinin, which, says the NCCAM. Study of mice
The compound, called silibinin, has not been studied for lung cancer in humans yet. So the researchers – including Singh Rana, Ph.D., University of Colorado School of Pharmacy – do not make recommendations for people.
Singh’s team is not exactly as lung cancer in mice with silibinin is.
In comparison, the scientists have not given any silibinin to a small group of mice.
Nine weeks later, this pattern still held. In addition, the group showed fewer new blood vessels in tumors of the lung silibinin and lower levels of cancer promoting chemicals.
The NCCAM advises people to tell their doctor about the supplements they take. “This is to ensure coordinated and safe care,” says the NCCAM Web site is.
Supplements are not regulated as prescription drugs in the U. S. In other words, they have not been evaluated by the government for the safety and efficacy.
Milk thistle may also trigger allergic reactions, especially among people who are allergic to plants of the same family (such as ragweed, chrysanthemum, marigold, and daisy).
Little is known about interactions with anticancer drugs milk thistle or other drugs, says the NCCAM.
NCCAM – who was not involved in the study of Singh – provides basic information on milk thistle:
Few side effects were reported for milk thistle, but there have been occasional reports of a laxative effect, upset stomach, diarrhea and bloating.
After the rats were on these diets for 4.5 months, the researchers found lung cancer in mice. They found lung cancer in mice with smaller silibinin in their diets than those who consume without silibinin. They also had fewer lung tumors of large size.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death. Singh silibinin team tested to see if I could stop lung cancer in mice.
They call for further studies of silibinin and lung cancer. More information about milk thistle
Why study silibinin? Has shown promise against other cancers in tests on rodents, and has few side effects, the researchers note. Their study was published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
“Although the mechanisms by which silibinin interferes with tumor growth in preclinical models of lung remains to be explored, these findings raise the possibility that silibinin may have chemopreventive activity against the growth and progression of lung cancer in humans,” write the researchers.
SIL seemed to slow down the growth and spread of lung cancer. But do not seem to stimulate tumor cell death, the study shows.
Milk thistle is a plant native to the Mediterranean region. It has been used for thousands of years for various ailments, including liver problems, says the website of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), part of the National Institutes of Health.
Singh and colleagues injected 90 young, male mice with a chemical that causes lung cancer.
Two weeks later, they added different doses of silibinin to food for most of the mice.
