Re: Does anyone drink White & or Green tea?

[Guest guest]

http://www.healthsentinel.com/news.php?

event=news_print_list_item & id=615

" Green Tea Extract Has Potential as Anti-Cancer Agent, According to

UCLA Researchers " , Medical News Today, February 15, 2005,

Link: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=20075

A study on bladder cancer cells lines showed that green tea extract

has

potential as an anti-cancer agent, proving for the first time that it

is able to target cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone.

The study, published in the Feb. 15, 2005 issue of the peer-reviewed

journal Clinical Cancer Research, also uncovered more about how green

tea extract works to counteract the development of cancer, said

JianYu

Rao, a Jonsson Cancer Center member, an associate professor of

pathology and laboratory medicine and the study's senior author.

" Our study adds a new dimension in understanding the mechanisms of

green tea extract, " Rao said. " If we knew exactly how it works to

inhibit the development of cancer, we could figure out more precisely

which bladder cancer patients might benefit from taking it. "

Numerous epidemiologic and animal studies have suggested that green

tea

extract provides strong anti-cancer effects in several human cancers,

including bladder cancer. It has been shown to induce death in cancer

cells, as well as inhibiting the development of an independent blood

supply that cancers develop so they can grow and spread.

In the UCLA study, which brought together researchers from UCLA's

Jonsson Cancer Center, School of Public Health, Center for Human

Nutrition and the departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine,

Surgery, Urology and Epidemiology, scientists were able to show that

green tea extract interrupts a process that is crucial in allowing

bladder cancer to become invasive and spread to other areas of the

body.

Green tea extract affects actin remodeling, an event associated with

cell movement. When a human moves, the muscles and skeletal structure

operate together to facilitate that movement. For cancer to grow and

spread, the malignant cells must be able to move. The cell movement

depends on actin remodeling, which is carefully regulated by complex

signaling pathways, including the Rho pathway. When actin remodeling

is

activated, the cancer cells can move and invade other healthy cells

and

eventually other organs. By inducing Rho signaling, the green tea

extract made the cancer cells more mature and made them bind together

more closely - a process called cell adhesion. Both the maturity of

the

cells and the adhesion inhibited the mobility of the cancer cells,

Rao

said.

" In effect, the green tea extract may keep the cancer cells confined

and localized, where they are easier to treat and the prognosis is

better, " Rao said. " Cancer cells are invasive and green tea extract

interrupts the invasive process of the cancer. "

Bladder cancer is the fifth most common cancer in the United States,

with about 56,000 new cases diagnosed each year. About half of all

bladder cancers are believed to be related to cigarette smoking.

Without a reliable, non-invasive way to diagnose the disease, bladder

cancer can be difficult to detect in the early, most treatable

stages.

When not found early, the tumors can be aggressive, and more than

half

of patients with advanced cancers experience recurrences.

UCLA researchers currently are seeking hundreds of former smokers who

have had bladder cancer for a clinical trial studying whether green

tea

extract prevents recurrence - one of the first studies in the country

to test the agent on cancer patients. The study is part of a

comprehensive program funded by the National Cancer Institute and

designed to prevent the recurrence and progression of smoking-related

bladder cancer. In addition to the trial, the program seeks to

develop

new biomarker tests to help predict who will get bladder cancer,

discover the molecular profile of the disease to identify those most

at

risk and create a tumor bank to aid research. Volunteers interested

in

participating in the study should call (310) 825-4415.

Rao cautioned that his study was conducted in a carefully controlled

cell line environment and that more research needs to be done to

discover exactly how green tea extract functions as a cancer fighter.

The next phase of his research will analyze urine from bladder cancer

patients to determine which subset of patients would benefit most

from

taking green tea extract. Researchers will be looking for specific

biomarkers associated with actin remodeling and activation of the Rho

signaling pathway.

" We're hoping the results from these studies will tell us who will

best

benefit from the agent, " Rao said, adding that the basic research he

is

doing and the clinical trial on bladder cancer patients will provide

scientists with vital information from both ends the research

continuum, an example of bench- to- bedside-and-back-again science.

" I think this publication further supports the potential role of

green

tea in the prevention and treatment of bladder cancer, " said Dr.

Figlin, a UCLA professor of hematology/oncology and urology and a

principal investigator for the human studies. " In the end, both

studies

will help us achieve our goal - to decrease bladder cancer occurrence

and develop molecular profiles that tell us who is most at risk. "

UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center is composed of more than

240

cancer researchers and clinicians engaged in cancer research,

prevention, detection, control and education. One of the nation's

largest comprehensive cancer centers, the JCCC is dedicated to

promoting cancer research and applying the results to clinical

situations. In 2004, the Jonsson Cancer Center was named the best

cancer center in the western United States by U.S. News & World

Report,

a ranking it has held for five consecutive years.

[Guest guest]

Ask Dr. Leu about it when you talk to him today!

Kenda

I have heard such awesome health benefits lately especially new

studies on white tea how its suppose to be even better for you than

Green Tea. So I've upped my intake of both. Anyway just wondering if

anyone else is drinking up!

Jen

Opinions expressed are NOT meant to take the place of advice given by licensed health care professionals. Consult your physician or licensed health care professional before commencing any medical treatment.

" Do not let either the medical authorities or the politicians mislead you. Find out what the facts are, and make your own decisions about how to live a happy life and how to work for a better world. " - Linus ing, two-time Nobel Prize Winner (1954, Chemistry; 1963, Peace)