Resveratrol and Cancer

Cancer is a very scary and a very touchy subject. I want to be very clear before I start off this discussion. As far as we at ReserveAge Organics know, there is no definite proof that Resveratrol fights cancer, however a number of studies have been producing exciting results. Resveratrol may fight cancer, we hope it does, but more studies MUST be done before people begin turning to this as a wonder drug.

One disease that I think many Americans fear the most is cancer. From a medical point of view there are a number of types of cancer, many of which are quite different from the others. However, we can define cancer as a loose term for a disease process in which a mutation within a cell makes it perform abnormally in destructive ways. These mutations typically take the form of uncontrolled growth (tumors) or the invasion and destruction of nearby tissue.

Now we do have some natural defenses against cancers. In fact our bodies help us fight them in two major ways. The first is that cells have an internal kill switch. This process is called apoptosis and in it, a cell recognizes that there is something wrong with it and kills itself. The second way we fight cancer is our white blood cells which seek out malfunctioning cells and destroy them.

Unfortunately though, our bodies can only do so much and sometimes it is not enough. At that point we must turn to our doctors. In this situation most cancers are typically treated in some combination of these three more common methods; surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

With surgery, the surgeons attempt to remove all of the cancerous tissue from the body. In radiation therapy, radiation is used on the cancerous tissue in an attempt to destroy the cancerous cells. This method actually damages normal cells in the area as well, but healthy non-cancerous cells are much better at recovering typically. The final method, chemotherapy, involves anticancer drugs that target and destroy cancerous cells. All of these methods are potentially life saving, but have the side effect of causing damage and trauma to the body.

Studies using Resveratrol have shown some exciting results for the treatment and prevention of certain cancers. I want to be very careful here though, the results of these studies are exciting and still in the early phases of testing.

As we discussed earlier, Resveratrol is rich in anti-oxidants, which are known to help prevent many cancers by limiting free radical damage. In addition, the same SIRT1 “Longevity Gene” that helps with anti-aging, may also stimulate cells to repair their own damage, such as damage that might lead to cancerous mutation.

Scientific research is also starting to discover that Resveratrol may aid the body in destroying cancer cells. The research is finding that Resveratrol may increase apoptosis (self-destruction) in cancerous cells. In these studies it was found that when exposed to certain dosages of Resveratrol, especially when combined with chemotherapy treatments, some cancer cells show increased apoptosis.

The results from these studies have excited researchers and led them to study Resveratrol in many of the common cancers including breast, prostate, colon, lymphoma and brain. I want to be clear here once more. While we know that Resveratrol will aid the body in preventing many cancers and I personally am extremely excited by the positive results that the scientific studies have found, this science is still in its early stages.