Turmeric Compounds Fight Brain Cancer

• Causes
• Symptoms
• Turmeric Activity
• Immortal Tumor Cells

Brain cancer is challenging to treat. However, research indicates the compounds in turmeric may help prevent growth of primary brain tumors. In fact, turmeric's curcumin compounds could also counteract many of the things that make brain tumors difficult to treat or resistant to therapy. These hurdles include: ^(vi.166)

• The blood-brain barrier: One of the obstacles to treating brain cancer is the blood-brain barrier (BBB). A layer of cells that shields the brain from potential harmful substances in the blood while supplying nutrients, the BBB can also block out chemotherapy drugs. ^(vi.216)
• Cancer stem cells: New research indicates another reason gliomas are so deadly is because some of their cells are more malignant. Cancer stem cells are aggressive, and help resist death from chemotherapy or radiation. ^(vi.215)
• Chronic low-level stress conditions: The endoplasmic reticulum stress response (ERSR) helps activate repair mechanisms in cells making damaged proteins. Brain cancer cells are in a state of chronic low-level ERSR. This may make them able to survive damage and death from conventional treatments. ^(vi.166)
• Oncogenic transcription factor proteins: NF-κB is involved in promoting many kinds of cancer, including medulloblastoma types of brain tumors. STAT3 is another transcription factor particularly active in some glioblastomas. Both factors trigger oncogenes and unhealthy production of various proteins that promote brain cancer growth. ^(vi.9, 217)

Studies suggest curcumin from turmeric may even help improve conventional therapy for the most common types of brain tumors. ^{(vi.9, 166, 174)}

Causes of Primary Brain Cancer

Studies suggest there may be a link between a number of environmental and dietary factors and an increased risk of brain tumors. These include: ^{(vi.214, 218-221)}

• Cell phone usage.
• Exposure to toxic chemicals.
• Dietary fat and cholesterol (too much of).
• Consumption of a potentially carcinogenic chemical produced in foods fried at high temperatures (especially food high in carbohydrates, such as potato chips and French fries).
• Dietary consumption of food containing nitrates (especially through pre-birth and childhood exposure) that can form carcinogenic N-nitroso compounds (NOCs).
• Hair dye.
• High tension wires.
• Traumatic brain injury.
• Pesticides.

However, according to some experts, exposure to ionizing radiation (such as from x-rays) is the only known external risk factor. Internally, defects in a certain gene are thought to cause brain tumor growth. These defects can be acquired or inherited. Tuberous sclerosis and von Hippel-Lindau disease are two hereditary conditions that may also increase the risk of brain tumors. ^{(vi.214, 218)}

Brain Tumor Symptoms

A headache is often the first sign of a brain tumor. However, a headache caused by a brain tumor differs from a typical headache in one or more noticeable ways: ^(vi.214)

• Begins during sleep and causes vomiting or confusion.
• Linked to feelings of weakness, numbness, or double vision.
• Painful morning headache that disappears within hours.

Tumors located in the brain stem always cause nausea and vomiting. Other signs of a brain tumor may include: ^(vi.214)

• Cognitive problems, such as loss of concentration, memory, speech, and reasoning skills.
• Dilated pupils.
• Fixed gaze.
• Gradual loss of function in an arm or leg.
• Loss of or impaired senses (hearing, skin sensation, smell, and/or vision).
• Personality changes.
• Seizures.
• Weakness or paralysis.

Turmeric Activity against Brain Cancer

Turmeric contains many natural phytochemicals with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that research suggests are beneficial against cancer. Most research has been conducted on turmeric's curcumin compounds—the pigment molecules that make turmeric yellow. Curcumin has been successfully tested in lab, animal, and clinical studies with cancer patients. ^{(vi.26, 181)}

Preclinical Evidence of Benefit

Lab and animal research indicates the following beneficial activities of turmeric's curcumin compounds:

The protein factors that turmeric's curcumin compounds affect to reduce brain tumor growth and increase treatment effectiveness include: ^{(vi.9, 56, 67, 107, 130, 159, 166, 174, 216, 217, 223, 224)}

How Turmeric's Curcumin Compounds Stop Brain Cancer Cells

Clinical Evidence of Benefit

Results of an exciting new clinical study suggest curcumin compounds from turmeric could help keep brain tumors at bay. The clinical trial involved 13 patients with glioblastoma. Prior to surgery to remove the tumor, all patients took 1 gram of curcuminoids mixed with pear juice three times a day for 4 days. ^(vi.486)

The curcumin used was in a liquid formula designed to maximize bioavailability. Blood tests showed that curcumin stayed in patient plasma and was found in the removed tumor tissue. In fact, curcumin in the tumor tissue was at levels known to be toxic to glioblastoma cells. Other scans detected increases in phosphate in the tumor after treatment, suggesting curcumin was affecting the tumor cells' mitochondria. ^(vi.486)

Although 3 patients dropped out of the study due to nausea, the side effects of curcumin were far less severe than found with chemotherapy. The researchers also indicated that taking the curcumin formula as a capsule, rather than a drink, might reduce nausea caused by the bitter taste. ^(vi.486)

Beating Immortal Brain Tumor Cells

Turmeric compounds can also help defeat immortal brain tumor cells. Normally the ends of a cell's DNA strands (called telomeres) shorten with each replication. Once they reach a certain point the cell naturally dies. ^{(vi.223, 226)}

Cancer cells are immortal because even though their telomeres are already at a shorter length, they stabilize and don't die. Instead, cancer cells produce telomerase, an enzyme that add sequences to the end of the DNA strand so they can continuously replicate and grow. Turmeric's curcumin compounds inhibit telomerase and trigger brain tumor cell death. ^{(vi.223, 226)}

Other Turmeric Compounds That May Help Block Brain Cancer

Turmeric contains phytochemical compounds and nutrients in addition to curcumin that research suggests can have beneficial effects against brain cancer. These include:

Extracts from turmeric leaves may also help limit exposure to potentially carcinogenic compounds in fried foods. According to recent experiments, adding as little as 0.2% of the extract can significantly slow down the deterioration of cooking oil—without noticeably affecting food quality. As oil deteriorates it becomes oxidized and forms dangerous acrylamide toxins—especially when frying starchy foods such as French fries. Acrylamide has been linked to the formation of brain tumors in animal studies. ^{(vi.220, 229)}