Evidence-based Non-Conventional Brain Cancer Therapy- Curcumin, Bromalain, Cat’s Claw, Infrasound and a little Conventional Chemo Thrown in for good luck…
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is perhaps the most dreaded of all brain cancer diagnoses. Dreaded not only for the fact that average life expectancies are dismal but also because standard therapies offered by conventional oncology offer little hope. The “standard-of-care” conventional therapies are non-curative, carry the risk of toxic side-effects and extend life little if at all.
In my 20 plus year effort to manage my own “incurable” cancer, multiple myeloma, I have taken a many-pronged approach to my anti-myeloma therapy. I pursue a combination of mind-body, nutrition, supplementation and other non-conventional therapies that have keep me cancer-free since ’99.
I encourage you, the GBM patient, to read the info linked below and consider a similar approach.
I am both a cancer survivor and cancer coach. For more information on both conventional and evidence-based non-conventional glioblastoma multiform therapies, scroll down the page, post a question or comment and I will reply to you ASAP.
thank you,
David Emerson
- Cancer Survivor
- Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Recommended Reading:
“Previous studies suggested that curcumin is a potential agent against glioblastomas (GBMs). In vitro, curcumin markedly inhibited proliferation and migration and induced cell death in liquid and soft agar models of GBM growth. Curcumin effects occurred irrespective of the p53 and PTEN mutational status of the cells…Besides its apoptotic effect, curcumin also synergized with the chemotherapeutics cisplatin and doxorubicin to enhance GBM cells death… Importantly, no evidence of tissue, metabolic, oxidative or hematological toxicity was observed. In summary, data presented here suggest curcumin as a potential agent for therapy of GBMs.
“Several complementary assays demonstrated that bromelain significantly and reversibly reduced glioma cell adhesion, migration, and invasion without affecting cell viability, even after treatment periods extending over several months…
Abstract-“Uncaria tomentosa(Cat’s Claw) inner bark extract is a popular plant remedy used in folk medicine to treat tumor and inflammatory processes. In this study, the anti-tumoral effects of its pentacyclic alkaloid mitraphylline were investigated. Furthermore, its growth-inhibitory and cytotoxic effects on glioma GAMG and neuroblastoma SKN-BE(2) cell lines were studied using cyclophosphamide and vincristine as controls…
This action suggests that mitraphylline is a new and promising agent in the treatment of human neuroblastoma and glioma.”
“Infrasound, sometimes referred to as low-frequency sound, is sound that is lower in frequency than 20 Hz or cycles per second, the “normal” limit of human hearing…”
“The development of nontoxic agents that can selectively enhance the cytotoxicity of chemotherapy is an important aim in oncology. This study evaluates the ability of infrasound exposure to sensitize glioblastoma cells to cisplatin-induced apoptosis….The results of this study provide support for using infrasound to enhance the chemotherapeutic effects of cisplatin in a clinical setting.”
The Most BioAvailable Curcumin Formulas
“Based on a review of these studies, it is evident that better bioavailability of formulated curcumin (CU) products is mostly attributed to improved solubility, stability, and possibly low first-pass metabolism”
A search of the Pubmed database for the word curcumin yields 601 studies spaning health topics from multiple myeloma and colorectal cancer, to chemotherapies that synergizes with CU, to Alzheimer’s Disease, arthritis and more. Based on years of reading studies and personal accounts, I think it is safe to say that CU supplementation is safe and relatively inexpensive.
I have read about myeloma patients taking daily doses of CU from 400 milligrams to 8 grams (1000 milligrams = 1 gram). By almost any measure, CU is a safe, inexpensive wonder drug.
The only challenge is that CU is famously difficult to absorb in the body. In other words, a person has to mix curcumin with some sort of fat (coconut oil, chocolate, etc.) or take a brand of curcumin capsule that is already formulated to be more “bioavailable” in order to derive the full benefit of CU.
The study linked and exerpted below reviews different formulations of CU. The study itself lists the three most bioavailable formulation/brand of CU and I’ve added an excerpt from a further review from Consumerlab.com that lists four additional bioavailable brands of CU.
Recommended Reading:
“CU is a bright yellow chemical produced by some plants. It is the principal curcuminoid of turmeric (Curcuma longa), a member of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is sold as an herbal supplement, cosmetics ingredient, food flavoring, and food coloring.[1]“
“Curcumin is a widely studied natural compound which has shown tremendous in vitro therapeutic potential. Despite that, the clinical efficacy of the native CU is weak due to its low bioavailability and high metabolism in the gastrointestinal tract. During the last decade, researchers have come up with different formulations with a focus on improving the bioavailability of curcumin. As a result, a significant number of bioavailable curcumin-based formulations were introduced with the varying range of enhanced bioavailability.
The purpose of this review is to collate the published clinical studies of CU products with improved bioavailability over conventional (unformulated) CU. Based on the literature search, 11 curcumin formulations with available human bioavailability and pharmacokinetics data were included in this review. Further, the data on clinical study design, analytical method, pharmacokinetic parameters and other relevant details of each formulation were extracted.
Based on a review of these studies, it is evident that better bioavailability of formulated curcumin products is mostly attributed to improved solubility, stability, and possibly low first-pass metabolism. The review hopes to provide a quick reference guide for anyone looking information on these bioavailable curcumin formulations.
Based on the published reports,
exhibited over 100-fold higher bioavailability relative to reference unformulated CU. Suggested mechanisms accounting for improved bioavailability of the formulations and details on the bioanalysis methods are also discussed.”
According to Consumerlab.com:
“Novasol has the highest bioavailability (185 x compared to unforumulated CU), followed by Curcuwin (136 x), Longvida (100 x), Meriva (48 x), BCM-95 (27 x), Curcumin C3 Complex + Bioperene (20 x), and then Theracumin (16 x).”
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For example, I supplement with 
