Green tea: seeking hope from nature

Hudson, a person with leukemia, does not believe in natural therapies. However, he used this medicine for more than 3 years, since his doctor at the Mayo clinic suggested it.

Hudson, a retired lawyer from Northern Virginia, said: 'My disease has not deteriorated since I used this medicine. This means that I will continue to use it. '

A recent study by Mayo Clinic researchers provided additional reasons to hope. They found that a high dose of green tea extract had a positive impact on Hudson's cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

Daniel Hauser's 'novel' story, a 13-year-old Minnesota boy with Hodgkin's leukemia, has raised arguments about the value of natural medicines, especially in cancer treatment. In Mayo's laboratories or elsewhere, scientists are putting those questions into trial, using microscopes on everything from shark cartilage to mistletoe to seek answers. The additional medical center of the National Institutes of Health has funded 47 cancer-related studies on issues such as vegetarian diet, soybeans, yoga, flax seeds, self-hypnosis, fish oil, massage, acupuncture, etc.

To date, most studies have focused on alternative therapies for pain relief or the side effects of cancer treatment, Mary Jo Kreitzer, director of the University's Center for Healing and Spirituality. Minnesota, said.

Studies that search for cancer-fighting properties do not produce good results, she said. "There has never been any real research to find that a natural medicine can cure cancer." Research on green tea is promising, but it is also difficult to make the most of natural healing.

A high dose of green tea extract has a positive effect on Hudson's cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). (Photo: Jaymun)

This is just a normal study, and the results found do not represent a major breakthrough. Only 1 in 33 patients had enough positive progress to rank 'subside'.However, in 12 patients, lymph nodes in 11 people had halved in 6 months.

Dr. Tait Shanafelt, cancer specialist at Mayo Clinic, who led the study published in the prestigious Journal of Clinical Oncology, said: 'This is a positive signal, it shows there are Certain benefits for patients'.

As a science, Shanafelt was attracted to the healing power of green tea a few years ago. For centuries, green tea has always been mentioned with health benefits, including preventing cancer. So he and his colleagues decided to put this herb into the experiment. They put leukemia cells in a tube and exposed it to green tea extract, called EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate). Most cells are wiped out.

When this result was known, some patients started using this EGCG extract, and they showed positive signs.

At that time, they decided to carry out a formal experiment, for 33 patients to use concentrated green tea extract. There are no patients who are undergoing chemotherapy because their disease is still in the early stages. The goal is to see if green tea inhibits the development of the disease

Patients cannot drink enough tea to get enough doses, about 2000 milligrams twice a day - the equivalent of about 100 cups of tea a day. Instead, they use a concentrated extract in a capsule.

Since there was no pharmaceutical company to fund research, Shanafelt turned to a patient organization, called CLL Topics. This organization has funded nearly $ 400,000 for this study and many other studies.

Dr. Chaya Venkat, the founder of the organization with her late husband, said she was eager to put the theory of green tea into trial. Her husband, PC Venkat from Sedona, Ariz., Used green tea extract for several years before dying last summer at the age of 59. Despite trusting the effect of green tea on leukemia, she remain cautious: 'I am a scientist, so I do not anticipate the results before doing the experiment'.

The results of the Mayo study are encouraging, if not perfect, she said: 'The Mayo study shows that green tea is really helpful for patients. It can reduce the development of disease. However, research has also shown that green tea does not really cure CLL '.

Most patients have only mild side effects, such as mild nausea. Shanafelt and his team are currently working on the next study.

Even if this is a success, he said, does not mean that cancer patients should start using green tea immediately. 'We think green tea is benign, but it also has the same origin as other chemicals or drugs.'

Shanafelt concluded: 'I think some of the things we do in the lab are like magic. But in nature there are also many miraculous things. '