Sea Cucumber Found to Kill 95% of Cancer Cells and Shrink Tumors

Sea Cucumber Found to Kill 95% of Cancer Cells and Shrink Tumors

 Combined articles by Don Porter for information  Dec. 1, 2013

 

Sea cucumber has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for hundreds of years, but they are relatively obscure in the U.S. This may be soon changing, however, as evidence mounts that sea cucumber extracts can kill cancer cells while stimulating the immune system.

As reported by Ethan Evers, author of “The Eden Prescription, previous research on sea cucumber has demonstrated its ability to kill lung, breast, prostate, skin, colon, pancreatic, and liver cancer cells. These extracts have also proven effective in killing leukemia and gioblastoma cells. Looks like we can add yet another food to the list of anti-cancer foods.

 

Scientists believe a key compound known as frondoside A to be responsible. Frondoside A is a triterpenoid, diverse organic compounds found in the essential oils and oleoresins of plants.

This latest study, published in PLoS One, has confirmed just how powerful frondoside A truly is. Researchers found it to kill 95% of ER+ breast cancer cells, 95% of liver cancer cells, 90% of melanoma cells, and 85-88% of three different types of lung cancer.

As Evers reports:

“But the benefits of this compound don’t just stop at directly inducing programmed cell death (apoptosis). It also inhibits angiogenesis (the ability of tumors to grow new blood vessels to get their food) and stops cancer metastasizing by impeding cell migration and invasion. Even more intriguing is the ability of frondoside A to activate our immune system’s natural killer cells to attack cancer cells. This has been shown for breast cancer in particular but may also apply to all cancers, because it involves the immune system and not cancer cells directly. This may partially explain why frondoside A was so effective at shrinking lung tumors in mice that it rivaled chemo drugs in performance.”

Source of this article: NaturalSociety

When given to mice with non-small cell lung cancer, frondoside A was found to shrink tumors by 40% in only 10 days. Traditional chemo drugs May shrink the tumors by up to 47%, but the risks of chemo treatment are far greater than any side-effects or risks of sea cucumber. (Namely because there are no known risks associated with sea cucumbers). In addition, the amount of frondoside A needed to achieve such results was miniscule—less than a single milligram for an adult weighing 165 pounds.   While sea cucumber extracts aren’t currently offered as a treatment for cancer—at least not in your traditional dr’s office—you can find dried and powdered sea cucumber in health stores. It is packaged as a solution to arthritis and similar conditions because of its anti-inflammatory properties.

Cancer Prevention Potential  -Eating sea cucumber may help prevent the growth and spread of cancer cells. This is because sea cucumbers contain high amounts of compounds known as triterpene glycosides, which have antitumor activity. According to a study by Chinese scientists published in Aug 2005 in “Cancer Biology & Therapy,” sea cucumbers also contain a compound known as philinopside E, or PE. PE inhibits the formation of blood vessels that supply nutrients to tumors. This suppresses the growth and proliferation of such tumors in your body.

Anticoagulant Activity -Blood clotting helps prevent excessive bleeding when you are injured. However, clots can also form inside your blood vessels even when you have no obvious physical injury. This can lead to potentially fatal conditions such as pulmonary embolism - - where the blood clots accumulate in lungs - - and restrict the flow of blood. Sea cucumbers contain a compound known as chondroitin sulfate. A study by Brazilian scientists published in September 1996 in the “Journal of Biological Chemistry” found that chondroitin sulfate has anticoagulant activity.

Anti-Inflammatory Activity -Sea cucumbers have potent anti-inflammatory effects, which may help alleviate pain in patients with conditions such as arthritis. A study by Malaysian scientists that was published in October 2011 in “Marine Drugs” found that sea cucumber supplements reduced inflammation in both male and female rats. This sea animal contains compounds such as mucopolysaccharides, chondroitin and glucosamine, which can help relieve arthritis disorders. Such compounds help in the regulation of the balance of certain lipids known as prostaglandins. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis usually have high concentrations of certain prostaglandins, according to a study published in 2008 in the “American College of Rheumatology.”

Wound Healing -Eating sea cucumber or its extracts may have therapeutic effects such as speeding up wound healing. It does so by facilitating the formation of new tissues within a short time -- a property that is believed to stem from the ability of a sea cucumber to regenerate its own body tissues quickly when it is injured. According to the October 2011 "Marine Drugs" study, this is believed to be facilitated by certain fatty acids, such as arachidonic acid, present in sea cucumber.

References

• The University of Queensland: Sea Cucumbers
• Chinese Dumpling Recipes: Sea Cucumber, Shrimp, Clam, and Chicken Dumplings
• Cancer Biology & Therapy: PE, A New Sulfated Saponin from Sea Cucumber, Exhibits Anti-Angiogenic and Anti-Tumor Activities in Vitro and In Vivo.
• Washington University School of Medicine : Blood Coagulation
• Journal of Biological Chemistry: Structure and Anticoagulant Activity of a Fucosylated Chondroitin Sulfate from Echinoderm. Sulfated Fucose Branches on the Polysaccharide Account for its High Anticoagulant Action.
• Marine Drugs: High-Value Components and Bioactives from Sea Cucumbers for Functional Foods—A Review
• American College of Rheumatology: Predominance of Cyclooxygenase 1 over Cyclooxygenase 2 in the Generation of Proinflammatory Prostaglandins in Autoantibody-Driven K/Bxn Serum–Transfer Arthritis

About the Author

Rebecca Howard has been a professional writer since 2001, with articles appearing in publications such as the "Canadian Journal of Diabetes." She is also a registered member of the Canadian Society of Nutrition Management. Howard holds a B.S. in nutrition from Ryerson Univy and an M.S in applied human nutrition from the Univ of Guelph. 

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