Office fruit news:

Extracts of a green and knobbly fruit grown on tropical vines appear to have properties which block breast cancer, say scientists.

Bitter melon, also known as bitter gourd or wild cucumber, is grown in Asia, Africa and South America.

Researchers found the key ingredients of the fruit interfered with chemical pathways involved in cancer growth, effectively encouraging cancer cells to kill themselves off.

However, although promising as an anti-cancer agent, further trials are still needed to assess the fruit’s impact on cancer, said the study published in the Cancer Research journal.

Study co-author Dr Rajesh Agarwal from the University of Colorado, added that there was no proof eating lots of bitter melon would offer any cancer protection.

Separate research published earlier this year also suggested that pomegranates could help prevent certain types of breast cancer cells from developing thanks to a naturally occurring chemical, ellagic acid.

The study published in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, stated that ellagic acid can reduce the risk of the three-quarters of breast cancers which are hormone-dependent and fuelled by oestrogen.

 

This entry was posted on Friday, February 26th, 2010 at 11:30 am and is filed under Office Fruit Blog-2010. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.