A groundbreaking new study has revealed that ginger, a widely used spice known for its medicinal properties, may hold the key to a powerful and selective cancer treatment.
The research suggests that ginger is an astonishing 10,000 times stronger than chemotherapy in targeting and eliminating cancer cells, while sparing healthy cells in the body.
This discovery opens up exciting possibilities for developing more effective and less harmful cancer therapies.
According to a study done by Georgia State University, ginger extract reduced the sizes of prostate tumor in mice by 56% and it also reduced the inflammation in the mice with the help of its antioxidants.
Another study, published in PLoS, found that 6-shogaol-a component of ginger, targeted the main reason behind breast cancer, i.e. breast cancer stem cells.
Cancer stems cells are also causers of other types of cancers as well, not just breast cancer. These cells have the ability to self-renew and differentiate continuously. Also, they are resistant to conventional chemo.
The researchers concluded that the anti-cancer properties of ginger happened at concentrations that weren’t toxic to the non-cancerous cells. So, ginger was able to destroy the cancer cells only, leaving the healthy ones intact. Selective cytotoxicity is not the case with conventional cancer therapies.
6-shogaol causes death of breast cancer cells, i.e. it induces a programmed cell death by inducing autophagy. It’s also known to prevent the formation of breast cancer lumps.
