Black Raspberries and Strawberries fight tumors, isothiocyanates prevent them

[Guest guest]

Stoner's most recent work was published in 2001, where he is busy

trying to whip up freeze-dried berry extracts he can take to China

where they have alarming rates of esophageal cancer from too much

spicy stuff and nitrosamines (just say no to packaged meats!)

By the way, the article mentions that broccoli and wasabi, with their

isothiocyanate payload, is the best way to prevent tumore development

in the first place, with the berry extracts working their " magic "

mostly after the tumor is established.

crdude35768@...

Strawberries, Raspberries Halt Cancer in Rats

Mon Sep 2, 5:30 PM ET

By Anne Harding

BOSTON (Reuters Health) - If animal studies are correct, black

raspberries and strawberries may be " very, very powerful " inhibitors

of cancer growth, an Ohio researcher reported here this month at the

American Chemical Society's annual meeting.

People should make berries one of their daily fruit servings, or at

least try to eat berries two or three times a week, Dr. D.

Stoner of Ohio State University told Reuters Health.

Animal studies by Stoner and his colleagues found the berries were

potent inhibitors of cancer development in rodents given cancer-

promoting chemicals. The team is now planning studies in people to

investigate the effect of berries on both esophageal and colon cancer.

Stoner and his team are studying squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the

esophagus, which makes up 95% of cases of esophageal cancer worldwide.

Overall, survival is very poor, with 10% of patients living 5 years

after diagnosis.

Esophageal SCC is particularly common in China, Japan, the Transkei

region of South Africa, Iran, France and Puerto Rico. Men are more

likely than women to develop the disease, and African Americans also

face an increased risk compared with whites.

Smoking, alcohol, salt, and hot and spicy foods are known to promote

the development of esophageal SCC. Fungal toxins and chemicals called

nitrosamines--both found in the Chinese diet--and vitamin and mineral

deficiencies have also been implicated.

To investigate strategies for blocking esophageal SCC growth, Stoner

and his team fed rats two types of cancer-promoting nitrosamine

chemicals. While chemicals called isothiocyanates proved to be the

best way to stop tumors from forming in the first place, strawberries

and black raspberries from an Ohio farm worked best for preventing

tumors from growing.

Isothiocyanates are found in many foods, including cruciferous

vegetables like broccoli and wasabi, a pungent Japanese condiment.

Rats that consumed 5% to 10% of their diet as freeze-dried black

raspberries and strawberries showed dramatic reductions in the growth

of precancerous cells and tumor progression, the researchers found.

And in other animal tests, Stoner told Reuters Health, the berries

reduced colon cancer growth by 80%.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture supported the research Stoner

presented at the meeting.

Eating berries could be a way to help people at risk of esophageal SCC

protect themselves from the disease, Stoner said.

But there are obstacles. For one, he pointed out, berries are a

seasonal food in most of the world, which has also made it difficult

to conduct epidemiological studies of their effects on cancer. And in

some countries where esophageal SCC is a major problem--like China--

people rarely eat berries. Finally, berries are expensive.

One way to get around these problems, Stoner said, might be to use

extracts of the freeze-dried berries. He and his colleagues have been

able to develop some potent berry extracts, he added.

Stoner and his team have completed Phase I trials to investigate the

toxicity of the berries and whether berry components reach the

bloodstream. People who ate two large bowls of berries a day showed

no toxic effects, and many fruit components were absorbed into the

blood, according to Stoner.

The researchers, in partnership with a food company, are now

launching Phase II clinical trials to investigate whether berries

have a cancer-protecting effect on esophageal cancer among people in

China and the US. They also plan to investigate the effect of berries

on colon cancer.

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Website: http://www.calorierestriction.org/