Green tea extract would possibly help blood cancer patients
The participants of the analysis were four victims of CLL, the foremost common sort of blood cancer, who were being given drugs containing green tea extract epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). Once a certain amount of your time, a decrease in cancerous cells in their bodies was observed. 3 of the 4 patients expressed improved response to treatment and one had improved white blood cell count. One patient whose lymph nodes had swollen up decreased in size when she started taking green tea pills.
Earlier in 2004, the same team of scientists, led by Dr Tait Shanafelt, had conducted a laboratory analysis of the influence of EGCG on leukemia cells. The findings were printed in an exceedingly 2004 edition of the journal Blood. It had been discovered {that the} green tea extract killed the leukemia cells. “The expertise of these individuals provides some suggestion that our previously printed laboratory findings may actually translate into clinical effects for patients with the disease,” Dr Shanafelt said.
“green tea has long been thought to possess cancer-prevention capabilities. It is exciting that research is now demonstrating this agent may offer new hope for CLL patients,” Dr Shanafelt added. So so much, no cure has been found for CLL, a progressing malignancy that usually targets people over fifty five years of age. In keeping with Dr Shanafelt, further studies are necessary for establishing the exact method and effect and the number of the extract that’s optimum.
“We don’t recognize how several patients were taking similar merchandise and failed to possess any benefit. We additionally do not nonetheless apprehend the optimal dose that ought to be used, the frequency with that patients ought to take the medication, and what aspect effects can be observed with long-term administration,” he said. The hematologist is currently developing an EGCG pill for the US National Cancer Institute to search out out whether or not the extract could be used to treat patients with CLL.
The medical fraternity expressed optimism at the results of the study, but felt that it might be too early to celebrate. “The findings are fascinating, however we have a tendency to cannot say nonetheless this is a replacement treatment for cancer. We would like to hold out a giant scale, controlled trial to determine if the findings hold true,” said Ken Campbell of United Kingdom’s Leukemia Analysis Fund. Around 7300 Americans are diagnosed with CLL each year, with men being additional subject to the disease than women.
