Nexus - 0802 - New Times Magazine-pages

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measured by the release of radioactive label from prelabelled Obviously every large, lethal, solid tumour began life as a sin- 14C-thymidine cells"."' gle cancer cell. It would seem possible that everyone might Other authors have found similar results. Di Luzio et al. found develop a single cancer cell somewhere in their body during their that glucan was capable of producing a "significant reduction in lifetime, yet not everyone dies of cancer or even develops a the growth of mammary carcinoma and melanoma B16", and con- noticeable cancer. It would seem possible that people with an cluded that "glucan initiates significant antitumor activity".'’ Ina active immune system may have macrophages in an activated separate study, Di Luzio et al. found that glucan produced "inhibi- state which can easily overcome and phagotise isolated single tion of tumor growth and enhancement of survival in a variety of | cancer cells in the body. On the other hand, if the natural transplantable tumors".® defences are weakened through exposure to environmental conta- In Japan, extracts containing various types of beta-glucan have minants and a single cancer cell develops, then that single cancer been used successfully to assist in the treatment of cancer patients cell may go unrecognised and unchallenged by the body's weak- for the last 20 years." ened natural defences. It would multiply and eventually would Additional evidence of the antitumour effects is given by R. become millions of cancer cells and a much bigger problem for Seljelid, who stated that "when water-soluble aminated beta-1,3D- the body to deal with. glucan was injected intravenously or intraperitoneally on day The concept of an ingredient working synergistically with a seven of tumor growth, the tumors under- drug is called the adjuvant principle. The went complete regression"."* Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary Similar injections of beta-glucan into defines adjuvant as "assisting in the pre- tumours, performed by Mansell et al., also vention, amelioration or cure of disease".'” showed positive results. The authors inject- Not only does beta-glucan have a direct ed beta-1,3D-glucan directly into patients effect as a biological response modifier with a variety of tumours, including breast when used alone, but it frequently demon- cancer and melanoma. Although the number . . strates an adjuvant effect by working syn- of patients was small (nine patients), they Scientists are well ergistically with other drugs. found in every case that "the size of the A lesion was strikingly reduced in as short a aware that sometimes SYNERGY WITH ANTIBIOTICS period as five days" and "the amount of glu- our immune system Just as beta-1,3D-glucan works syner- can injected and the quantity of residual sim | fails to gistically with anti-cancer drugs, it also tumor appeared to be related",'* suggesting a Pp y works synergistically when used in combi- dose-response correlation. recognise and hence nation with antibiotics. Doctors from Scientists are well aware that . Harvard Medical School conducted sometimes our immune system simply kill cancer cells, randomised, double-blind, phase 1/2 tas to recognise and ence kill camer resulting in the clinical ids ora modified beta-glu- cells, resulting in the uncontrolle can, calle -glucan, to test its uncontrolled growth of the cancer. growth of the cancer. Researchers at effectiveness in infection control in the University of Louisville, USA, igh-risk surgical patients. The showed that beta-1,3D-glucan coul results of the clinical trials were very help the immune system to target an clear and statistically significant: then kill cancers that otherwise woul eta-glucan greatly reduced the rate have gone unrecognised and hence of infection in these patients. The unaffected by the immune system. The Harvard researchers stated: "Patients authors wrote: "Despite exhibiting who received PGG-glucan had sig- membrane-bound C3, breast tumor cell nificantly fewer infectious complica- lines were not killed by CR3-bearing tions (3.4 infections per infected natural killer cells. Priming of natural patient vs 1.4 infections per infecte killer cell CR3 with small, soluble atient, p = 0.05), decreased intra- yeast beta-glucan polysaccharides enabled CR3-dependent killing venous antibiotic requirement (10.3 days vs 0.4 days, p = 0.04) of these same C3-bearing tumor cell lines".'” So beta-1,3D-glucan and shorter intensive care unit length of stay (3.3 days vs 0.1 s the immune system in recognising cancer cells from normal days, p = 0.03)." They concluded that "glucan is safe and appears cells. to be effective in the further reduction of the morbidity and cost of Beta-glucan exhibits not only a direct anti-tumour effect via major surgery" and, further, that "there were no adverse drug 1 20 macrophage activation and enhanced cancer cell recognition, but experiences associated with PGG-glucan" - also shows a synergistic effect when used in combination with Another Harvard Medical School study of glucan found similar conventional anti-cancer drugs. K. Gomaa et al. state that when positive results. The authors found "a dose-response trend with used alone, "glucan exhibited a strong inhibition of tumour regard to infection incidence" among patients who receive growth of the allogeneic sarcoma-180". However, they wrote that glucan—meaning that the higher the dose of glucan, the smaller in testing the synergistic effect of glucan with anti-cancer drugs, was the resulting incidence of patient infection.” "against the hormone-sensitive Noble-Nb-R prostate carcinoma In 1999, doctors from the University of Washington School of the glucan alone showed a moderate antitumour effect, whereas in | Medicine conducted a multicentre, prospective, randomised, combination with diethylstilbestrol an almost complete regression double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of a type of beta-1,3D- of the tumour could be achieved". This is just one of many glucan on patients scheduled for gastrointestinal operations. examples where glucan has been shown to have a synergistic Thirty-nine medical centres throughout the United States were effect when combined with other medications. involved. All patients received standardised antibiotic our immune system simply fails to recognise and hence kill cancer cells, resulting in the uncontrolled growth ~f£ab- -- -. of the cancer. NEXUS - 35 Scientists are well aware that sometimes FEBRUARY — MARCH 2001