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A sugar supplement could possibly slow the growth of mesothelioma and other types of cancer.
The sugar supplement is called mannose. Mannose is naturally present in some fruits, especially cranberries. It is also sold as dietary supplement.
Cancer Research researchers in the UK and around the world claim that mannose has slowed tumor growth in mice. The mice tested had leukemia, bone cancer, ovarian cancer or bowel cancer.
In a new report in the newspaper Nature, the researchers say that mannose has reduced the size of tumors in mice. It has also allowed chemotherapy to work better and some mice to live longer.
How does mannose slow down tumor growth?
All cells in the body need glucose to grow. This includes cancer cells.
Cancer like mesothelioma need more glucose than healthy cells. The mannose sugar supplement interferes with glucose and limits the amount of sugar that cancer cells can use.
"Tumors need a lot of glucose to grow. Limiting the amount of glucose they can use should therefore slow down the progression of cancer, "says lead author Kevin Ryan, a professor at Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute.
Slow growth of cancer in mice
To test the ability of mannose to slow cancer growth, scientists put the sugar supplement into the drinking water of sick mice. These mice had pancreatic, lung or skin cancer.
The doctors found that the tumors in the mice who drank the supplement were developing much more slowly. Just as importantly, the mice had no obvious side effects.
In another test, the mice received two popular chemotherapy drugs – cisplatin and doxorubicin. Some cancer cells have responded well to treatment, others not.
Cells with low levels of a particular enzyme were more sensitive to mannose. Doctors say that they could use this enzyme to predict which cancer patients might respond to treatment.
The sugar supplement and patients with mesothelioma
Although there is some preliminary research, Dr. Ryan hopes that cancer patients will one day be able to take mannose to help chemotherapy work better. One of the best things about mannose is that it does not make patients even sicker.
This is particularly important for people with pleural mesothelioma or peritoneal mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma tumors develop rapidly and patients do not have many options to slow them down. Indeed, mesothelioma cells often do not respond to standard anticancer drugs.
If scientists can prove that mannose works in humans and in mice, this could be good news for mesothelioma patients.
"Mannose could be a simple, safe and selective treatment for cancer," says Dr. Ryan.
It is necessary to further test the mannose sugar supplement before doctors know how effective it is for people with mesothelioma. In the meantime, patients with mesothelioma should not take any supplements or change their diet without consulting their doctor first.
Source:
Gonzalez, P, et al, "Mannose slows tumor growth and improves chemotherapy", November 21, 2018, Nature, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-018-0729-3
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