Cancer Researchers Foresee Legitimate Role for 'Alternative' Medicine
Contact: Glen Weldon and Jeff Prince, 202-328-7744,
American Institute for Cancer Research;
Web site: http://www.aicr.org
WASHINGTON, Sept. 2 /U.S. Newswire/ -- In a surprising move, scientists at the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) 9th Annual Conference predicted that mounting scientific evidence may lead the medical community to recognize a wider role for herbal medicine and supplements in cancer prevention.
Researchers at a panel discussion on herbal and "alternative" medicine expressed the opinion that widespread scientific acceptance was both logical and inevitable. They cautioned, however, that the process will likely take time, as more and more studies verify a range of beneficial effects from natural substances within plants. Up to now, such effects could be dismissed as anecdotal by the medical establishment.
"In regard to alternative medicine," said Dr. Richard Rivlin of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, "we need to avoid an extreme viewpoint. We ought not embrace it too fast or uncritically. We ought not reject it out of hand. We need to submit so-called 'alternative' or complementary theories to the same rigorous testing that we use for more conventional approaches."
Several of those "more conventional approaches," in fact, were the focus of the AICR conference, Rivlin said. The scientific community has long been studying how substances within fruits, vegetables, grains and beans (called phytochemicals) work to protect against various diseases, including cancer. The AICR conference highlighted recent research into the cancer-fighting activity of natural substances within soy, tea, garlic, grapes, and the trace mineral selenium.
"Such work has convincingly established the enormous potential of phytochemicals in cancer prevention and treatment," said Dr. Michael J. Wargovich of the South Carolina Cancer Center, "and that in itself is a strong argument for 'alternative' approaches." He pointed out that approximately half the drugs now widely used in cancer treatment are derived from plants. As phytochemical research continues, he said, more and more plant-based treatments will emerge.
"The scientific community is now examining the clear and verifiable preventive effects that plants like soy, garlic, grapes and tea are exhibiting against cancer," Dr. Wargovich said. "We are discovering the cellular mechanism involved, and learning how to use these foods to target the pathways that lead to cancer development. It's that very same approach, those very same mechanisms and pathways, behind the so-called 'alternative' or herbal remedies that have been used for thousands of years."
Dr. Rivlin added that "alternative" medicine has historically made important contributions to science. He described how 19th-century British physicians mocked the rural midwives who prescribed foxglove (containing the potent medicine digitalis) for edema, while those same physicians were still treating the condition with leeches.
Dr. Wargovich lauded the AICR conference for providing a forum where members of the medical community could discuss these findings. It is this clinical community that most pressingly needs to hear about this topic, he said, because the general public has already bought in.
"One in three American households reportedly use daily dietary supplements right now, and those patients are forever asking their clinicians for up-to-date information on this topic," Dr. Wargovich said.
As more and more members of the public look to "alternative" medicine, and as continuing tests and trials establish the scientific basis of such approaches, many researchers believe a change in national policy lies ahead.
Panel members at the AICR conference compared the current state of herbal supplements in America (where recent federal legislation effectively eliminated regulation, allowing the supplement industry to make unsubstantiated claims) to the marketplace in Europe (where all herbal products with a medicinal claim must provide proofs of quality, safety and efficacy before they can be approved for marketing.)
An American system of regulations based on this European model may not be around the corner, but researchers agreed it bears investigating. In the meantime, they said, caution is needed to navigate the misleading or outright false claims made by many manufacturers of herbal and nutrient supplements.
They also warned against taking large doses of particular supplements in the hopes of reaping large benefits. In many cases this practice is useless, in others it is dangerous.
Until additional research comes in, AICR recommends a more broad-based approach to lowering cancer risk, which ensures a rich and varied supply of many different phytochemicals: a predominantly plant-based diet high in fruits, vegetables, grains and beans.
"We don't yet know enough about the various cancer-fighting mechanisms involved to prescribe particular foods, phytochemicals or supplements," Dr. Rivlin said. "Nevertheless, we can give people some solid, well-founded advice about diet and cancer. All of our research to date makes it abundantly clear that consuming a variety of vegetables and fruit is a wise course."
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The American Institute for Cancer Research is the only major cancer charity focusing exclusively on the link between diet and cancer. The Institute provides a wide range of consumer education programs that have helped millions of Americans learn to make changes for lower cancer risk. AICR also supports innovative research in cancer prevention and treatment at universities, hospitals and research centers across the U.S. The Institute has provided over $50 million in funding for research in diet, nutrition and cancer. AICR's Internet Web address is http://www.aicr.org
-0- /U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/ 09/02 11:00
Copyright 1999, U.S. Newswire
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