Cancer breakthrough: broccoli component zaps cells that fuel ...

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Breast cancer breakthrough: broccoli component zaps cells that fuel tumor

growth

May 19, 2010

Null in Cancer, Health, Medicine

University of Michigan (U-M) Comprehensive Cancer Center scientists say

they've found a compound that could help prevent and potentially treat breast

cancer. It's not a drug or a new radiation treatment but a natural

component of broccoli and broccoli sprouts. And it has the remarkable ability

to

target cancer stem cells -- the specific cells responsible for fueling the

growth of cancerous breast tumors.

The researchers tested the broccoli compound, known as sulforaphane, in

animal studies as well as in breast cancer cell cultures in the lab. Their

findings, which were recently published in the journal Clinical Cancer

Research, showed sulforaphane not only targeted and killed cancer stem cells,

but

it also prevented any new malignancies from growing.

What makes this such an extraordinary breakthrough? Current chemotherapies

don't do anything to stop cancer stem cells. That's why cancer can recur

and spread after chemotherapy. So many researchers have long believed that

to control cancer, you have to find a way to eliminate cancer stem cells --

and now it appears sulforaphane does exactly that.

" Sulforaphane has been studied previously for its effects on cancer, but

this study shows that its benefit is in inhibiting the breast cancer stem

cells. This new insight suggests the potential of sulforaphane or broccoli

extract to prevent or treat cancer by targeting the critical cancer stem

cells, " study author Duxin Sun, Ph.D., associate professor of pharmaceutical

sciences at the U-M College of Pharmacy and a researcher with the U-M

Comprehensive Cancer Center, said in a statement to the media.

For their study, the U-M researchers first worked with mice with breast

cancer. They used several well-documented methods to assess the number of

cancer stem cells in the animals' breast tumors. Then the research team

injected varying concentrations of sulforaphane extracted from broccoli into

the

mice.

The results? There was a dramatic decrease in the number of cancer stem

cells after treatment with sulforaphane, but there was little effect on the

normal cells.What's more, the cancer cells from mice treated with

sulforaphane were unable to generate new tumors.

Next, the scientists tested sulforaphane on human breast cancer cell

cultures in the lab. Once again, they found the numbers of cancer stem cells

plummeted after exposure to the broccoli compound.

" This research suggests a potential new treatment that could be combined

with other compounds to target breast cancer stem cells. Developing

treatments that effectively target the cancer stem cell population is essential

for

improving outcomes, " study co-author Max S. Wicha, M.D., Distinguished

Professor of Oncology and director of the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center,

said in the press statement.

The scientists pointed out that concentrations of sulforaphane used in the

study were higher than what can be normally achieved by eating broccoli or

broccoli sprouts. However, previous research suggests the body can absorb

high enough concentrations of sulforaphane from broccoli extract to impact

cancer. Currently, the U-M research team is working to develop a method to

extract and preserve sulforaphane. They are also planning a future clinical

trial to test sulforaphane both as a prevention and treatment for breast

cancer.

NaturalNews has previously reported on additional health benefits of

broccoli. For example, broccoli sprouts have been found to potentially play a

protective role in the prevention of gastric cancer by reducing colonization

of the cancer and ulcer-linked bacteria Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in

the body (http://www.naturalnews.com/026018_s...).

Research by University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) scientists also

found that sulforaphane in broccoli appears to protect against respiratory

inflammation that causes asthma, allergic rhinitis, chronic obstructive

pulmonary disease (COPD) and other conditions that make it hard to breathe

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