resveratrol – Oral Cancer News

Red wine: Cancer causing or cancer protective? Researchers say both

Source: Medical News Today Author: David McNamee People who drink red wine have the lowest incidence of cancer caused by alcohol, and researchers think they know why that is. A new study published in the medical journal Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology explains that while alcohol has cancer causing effects, red wine offers an anti-cancer quality that most other forms of alcohol do not offer. The study was completed by researchers at the University of Colorado Cancer Center. When people first begin to metabolize alcohol, it is converted to acetyl aldehyde, a known carcinogen. “With enough alcohol, the body can get behind and end up with a backlog of acetyl aldehyde,” Dr. Robert Sclafani, the author of the paper, said. As he looked at epidemiological studies of head and neck cancer, he noted that alcohol is a major factor. He explained that when he separated the data into the type of alcohol, it was clear that people who drank red wine seemed to be more protected from cancer. “In red wine, there’s something that’s blocking the cancer-causing effect of alcohol,” Sclafani said. Sclafani believed the resveratrol found in the skin of the grapes used to make red wine removes the most damaged cells from wine drinkers’ bodies. The most heavily damaged cells are also the cells most likely to turn cancerous, according to Medical News Today. “Alcohol bombards your genes,” Sclafani explained. “Your body has ways to repair this damage, but with enough alcohol eventually some damage isn’t fixed. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2019-02-05T12:23:33-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Rare genetic disease offers insight into common cancers

Source: www.sciencecodex.com Fanconi anemia is a recessive genetic disorder affecting 1 in 350,000 babies, which leaves cells unable to repair damaged DNA. This lack of repair puts Fanconi anemia patients at high risk for developing a variety of cancers, especially leukemias and head and neck cancer. Cruelly, the condition also nixes the use of an entire class of cancer drugs, namely drugs like mitomycin C that act by encouraging DNA to crosslink together like sticky strands of bread dough – generally, healthy cells can repair a few crosslinks whereas cancer cells cannot and so are killed. However, Fanconi anemia patients are unable to repair the damage done to healthy or cancerous cells done by these drugs and so treatment with mitomycin C is frequently fatal. A University of Colorado Cancer Center study funded by the Fanconi Anemia Research Fund explored the effectiveness of a novel agent in preventing cancer in this population – namely, resveratrol as found in red wine. The results of this study will be presented at the 24th annual Fanconi Anemia Research Fund Scientific Symposium, September 27-30 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Denver, CO. In fact, the findings may go far past Fanconi anemia. "One of the Fanconi genes that is lost is BRCA2 – the same genetic loss that causes many breast cancers," says Robert Sclafani, PhD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics at the CU School of Medicine. "So one mystery is why Fanconi anemia [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2012-09-06T19:43:54-07:00September, 2012|Oral Cancer News|

CU Med School prof seeing red over wine benefit study

Source: www.aurorasentinel.com Author: Sara Castellanos There’s a reason Robert Sclafani always chooses red wine over white wine, and it’s not just because he thinks it tastes better. Sclafani, a professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics at the University of Colorado’s School of Medicine, prefers the darker of the two wines because of its health benefits. Red wine contains much more of a compound called resveratrol, found in the skin of grapes and also in peanuts and leeks. Sclafani and his colleagues are currently testing the effects of resveratrol on mice, and this month he received encouraging news from overseas that resveratrol can have health benefits for obese humans. “There are a number of studies in animals where you can take an animal like a mouse and give it cancer by treating it with carcinogens or manipulating the genes in mice so they’ll get cancer,” Sclafani said. “If you treat the animal with resveratrol, it blunts the effect; they either get less cancers, cancers never develop or they never go anywhere.” Here’s how it works: resveratrol causes damage to the DNA in cancer cells, he said. “We think that’s the Achilles heel,” he said. The compound has been known to have positive effects for more than a decade, but on Nov. 2, a group of scientists in the Netherlands showed for the first time that it can have health benefits in obese humans. Eleven obese but healthy men had taken a relatively low dose of the compound daily for a month, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-11-20T09:52:00-07:00November, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Fighting cancer through healthy living

Source: www.cancure.org Author: staff The National Cancer Institute estimates that roughly one-third of all cancer deaths may be diet related. What you eat can hurt you, but it can also help you. Many of the common foods found in grocery stores or organic markets contain cancer-fighting properties, from the antioxidants that neutralize the damage caused by free radicals to the powerful phytochemicals that scientists are just beginning to explore. There isn't a single element in a particular food that does all the work: The best thing to do is eat a variety of foods. The following foods have the ability to help stave off cancer and some can even help inhibit cancer cell growth or reduce tumor size. Avocados are rich in glutathione, a powerful antioxidant that attacks free radicals in the body by blocking intestinal absorption of certain fats. They also supply even more potassium than bananas and are a strong source of beta-carotene. Scientists also believe that avocados may also be useful in treating viral hepatitis (a cause of liver cancer), as well as other sources of liver damage. Broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower have a chemical component called indole-3-carbinol that can combat breast cancer by converting a cancer-promoting estrogen into a more protective variety. Broccoli, especially sprouts, also have the phytochemical sulforaphane, a product of glucoraphanin - believed to aid in preventing some types of cancer, like colon and rectal cancer. Sulforaphane induces the production of certain enzymes that can deactivate free radicals and carcinogens. The enzymes have [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-05-20T18:06:51-07:00May, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

CU finds supplement could help treat some cancers

Source: cbs4denver.com Author: Libby Smith Researchers in Colorado have found that a natural supplement called Resveratrol may help in treating certain cancers. Many people swear by Resveratrol because it's been shown to have anti-aging benefits and prevent cancer in some animals. Now local researchers are finding that Resveratrol may make radiation more effective in treating head and neck cancers. The study is currently in the lab at the University of Colorado Cancer Center, but researchers are hoping to eventually try their therapy on humans. "What we're trying to do is exploit what we know about Resveratrol to use in therapy," said Dr. Robert Sclafani, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics. " Sclafani and Dr. David Raben, a radiation oncologist, are working together studying head and neck cancer cells grown in the laboratory and treating them with Resveratrol. "This compound or these types of compounds seem to have a lot of activity in stopping head and neck cancer cells from growing," Raben said. They've found Resveratrol fools the cancer cells into thinking their DNA has been damaged, much like radiation, but without damaging normal cells. By treating cancer with both Resveratrol and radiation, the radiation may be more effective and have fewer side effects. "It fools cancer cells into thinking that its DNA has been damaged very much like radiation does but without the toxicity," Sclafani said. "One of the other areas interesting about this particular compound is that we may even be able to prevent secondary head and neck cancers [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-03T06:48:38-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|