Green Tea and Cancer

[shaolinstylee]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/hsn/20040408/hl_hsn/greenteacomponentkillsleukemiacells

just thought y'all would be interested in this.


THURSDAY, April 8 (HealthDayNews) -- A component of green tea helps kill cells of B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the second most common leukemia in American adults, according to new research.



Mayo Clinic researchers found that the component, called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), destroys leukemia cells by interrupting the communication signals they need to survive. The research appears online in the journal Blood.


CLL is most often diagnosed in people in their mid-to-late 60s. Chemotherapy is used to treat the most severe cases, but there is no cure for CLL.


In this study, the Mayo scientists found that EGCG prompted leukemia cells to die in eight of 10 patient samples tested in a laboratory.


"We're continuing to look for therapeutic agents that are nontoxic to the patient but kill cancer cells, and this finding with EGCG is an excellent start," study leader Dr. Neil E. Kay said in a prepared statement. "Understanding this mechanism and getting these positive early results gives us a lot to work with in terms of offering patients with this disease more effective, easily tolerated therapies earlier."


More information


The U.S. National Cancer Institute (news - web sites) has more about CLL.

[doc]

A few things.

This was all done in the laboratory. Which means, that the concentrations that were used, may be significantly higher than what the most aggressive tea drinker in the world could not achieve. Remember, you drink tea, you absorb tea, some components of tea eventually end up in your bloodstream (ie, caffeine). The amounts necessary to kill CLL cells, might be of a concentration not achievable by drinking tea.

I hate drinking tea, so, I guess I'm basically screwed.

Third, someone next year will write a paper saying all of this is bull****.

The medical paper mill. I've commented on this somewhere else in the board.

[shaolinstylee]

I know, I was just forwarding on info

Just thought it was interesting.

[doc]

In fact, this is an old issue. I remember this from a while ago. And then, sometime in the last month or two, another researcher came out and proved that it wasn't true.

Such is the world of medical publications. Warned you guys about this.

I think the best proof that we have, that green tea is good for you, is the one billion Chinese that drink the stuff every day.

And, over there, I look young.

[shaolinstylee]

Ok there mister mixed message. lol

I just would rather drink tea than boring old water.. which I drink a butt load of every day. I'm trying to phase out soda again, I gave it up for a few years, need to do that again.

[kirvixus]

yeah I drink way too much soda. at least 4 cans a day. I shoould probably stop.

[prajna]

My old Chinese doctor once told me about her friend in Beijing, a cancer specialist who cured himself of lung cancer by testing out his formula on himself that he was experimenting/refining he had the resourses. It basically was super-condensed antioxidents extracted from green tea.

Now I haven't heard anything about this since, so it can't have been that successful in wider tests.

If I find anymore I'll post it.

Jon

[doc]

Now I haven't heard anything about this since, so it can't have been that successful in wider tests.

No doubt because he probably died.

[prajna]

Originally posted by doc
No doubt because he probably died.

Maybe he did, when I see her again I'll ask

[doc]

I haven't seen much luck with these things,nor have I ever seen any truly scientific studies done on them, in China, that prove their efficacy. And I've spoken with a few of these people who have invented "concoctions" that were supposed to "cure" things.

I remain skeptical.

[zachsan]

well there's no doubt they are definitely concoctions.

- zach