Bee venom is being studied for breast cancer

Christer Sundqvist

The effect of bee venom (Apis mellifera) on breast cancer cells has been studied in Australia. Of particular interest was the effect of a key component of the toxin, melitin. The study found that the venom effectively killed various types of breast cancer. Quite a good effect of the venom was found on the aggressive and easily recurrent type of breast cancer.

 

Melitin can now also be produced synthetically. The toxin was able to completely destroy the membranes of the cancer cells in an hour and effectively reduced the chemical communication of the cancer cells. Communication is essential for the growth and division of cancer cells. Studies have shown in the past that melittin is effective in the treatment of melanoma, lung cancer, leukemia, and ovarian and cervical cancers, among others.

 

The research team also tested whether melittin could be combined with drugs used in chemotherapy. The combination drug was very effective in reducing tumors in mouse experiments.

 

Further research is needed.

 

Source:

 

Duffy, C., Sorolla, A., Wang, E. et al. Honeybee venom and melittin suppress growth factor receptor activation in HER2-enriched and triple-negative breast cancer. npj Precis. Onc. 4, 24 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41698-020-00129-0

 

 3,525 total views

Complementary and alternative medicine is frequently used among breast cancer patients

The Working Group for Prevention and Integrative Oncology of the German Cancer Society CAM-PRIO investigated whether breast cancer patients wanted to use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in their treatment situation. The objective was to assess the

Mistletoe therapy may be effective against breast cancer

Extracts of mistletoe (Viscum album L.) are the most prescribed medicinal products in integrative outpatient care for cancer patients in German-speaking countries. The use of mistletoe preparations varies in different types of cancer. Up to 77.3% of breast can

Exercise improves quality of life in cancer patients

Recently a study was published, which indicated that exercise had beneficial effects on the quality of life of patients with lung cancer. The effectiveness seemed to be affected by the duration of the exercise intervention, as well as exercise frequency, inten