Flor-Essence herbal tonic does not inhibit mammary tumor development in Sprague Dawley rats

Herbal tonic does not inhibit estrogen receptor negative mammary tumor development in a transgenic mouse model

Women who are diagnosed with breast cancer often self-administer complementary and alternative medicines to augment their conventional treatments, improve health, or prevent recurrence. Flor-Essence® herbal tonic is a complex mixture of eight herbal extracts used by cancer patients because of anecdotal evidence that it can treat or prevent disease. In this study four experimental groups of female MMTV-Neu mice were left untreated or treated with 3% Flor-Essence® in utero, from birth until 5 weeks of age, or throughout their lifetime. Palpable mammary tumor incidence and body weight was determined weekly for each group. The mice were sacrificed at 28 weeks of age and mammary tumors were enumerated to determine average tumor incidence and multiplicity for each group. Female mice exposed to Flor-Essence® herbal tonic in utero weighed significantly more than the control group (p < 0.001). The average tumor incidence and tumor multiplicity in the experimental mice treated with Flor-Essence® herbal tonic did not differ from the control animals. Flor-Essence® does not inhibit mammary tumor incidence or mammary tumor multiplicity in MMTV-Neu transgenic mice. Flor-Essence® exposure in utero causes increased body weight in experimental animals. This conclusion challenges widely available anecdotal information as well as the hopes of the consumer that this product will inhibit or suppress tumor development.

Clinical studies of red clover (Trifolium pratense) dietary supplements in menopause: a literature review

Red clover (Trifolium pratense L., Fabaceae) botanical dietary supplements have received much attention recently for their potential use in the treatment of menopause symptoms, maintenance/improvement of bone and cardiovascular health, and reported benign effects on the breast and endometrium. Literature searches of four computerized databases were run to identify clinical studies of red clover botanical dietary supplements. The manufacturer of the red clover products used in the majority of the studies was contacted for unpublished information and/or clarification regarding the chemical content of their products. Red clover studies were reviewed that pertained to women's health or menopause. Clinical evidence is presently lacking to support the efficacy of semipurified red clover isoflavone extracts for alleviation of climacteric vasomotor symptoms or reduction of low-density lipoprotein levels in the blood. Furthermore, the safety of use of red clover isoflavone supplements in patients with breast or endometrial cancer has not been established. Limited evidence suggests possible efficacy in maintenance of bone health and improvement of arterial compliance, a risk factor for atherosclerosis. This literature review covers red clover botanical dietary supplement clinical studies having a possible impact on the health care of mature and menopausal women, and provides historical perspective regarding the traditional uses of red clover.

Essiac and Flor-Essence herbal tonics stimulate the in vitro growth of human breast cancer cells

BACKGROUND

People diagnosed with cancer often self-administer complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs) to supplement their conventional treatments, improve health, or prevent recurrence. Flor-Essence and Essiac Herbal Tonics are commercially available complex mixtures of herbal extracts sold as dietary supplements and used by cancer patients based on anecdotal evidence that they can treat or prevent disease. In this study, we evaluated Flor-Essence and Essiac for their effects on the growth of human tumor cells in culture.

METHODS

The effect of Flor-Essence and Essiac((R)) herbal tonics on cell proliferation was tested in MCF-7, MDA-MB-436, MDA-MB-231, and T47D cancer cells isolated from human breast tumors. Estrogen receptor (ER) dependent activation of a luciferase reporter construct was tested in MCF-7 cells. Specific binding to the ER was tested using an ICI 182,780 competition assay.

RESULTS

Flor-Essence and Essiac herbal tonics at 1%, 2%, 4% and 8% stimulated cell proliferation relative to untreated controls in both estrogen receptor positive (MCF-7 and T47D) and estrogen receptor negative (MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-436) cell lines. Exposure to the tonics also produced a dose-dependent increase in ER dependent luciferase activity in MCF-7 cells. A 10(-7) M concentration of ICI 182,780 inhibited the induction of ER dependent luciferase activity by Flor-Essence and Essiac, but did not affect cell proliferation.

CONCLUSION

Flor-Essence and Essiac Herbal Tonics can stimulate the growth of human breast cancer cells through ER mediated as well as ER independent mechanisms of action.

Essiac tea: scavenging of reactive oxygen species and effects on DNA damage

Essiac, a tea reportedly developed by the Ojibwa tribe of Canada and widely publicized as a homeopathic cancer treatment, is prepared from a mixture of four herbs Arctium lappa, Rumex acetosella, Ulmus rubra and Rheum officinale. Each of these herbs has been reported to possess antioxidant and anti-cancer activity. Essiac itself has also been reported to demonstrate anti-cancer activity in vitro, although its effects in vivo are still a matter of debate. We prepared an extract of Essiac tea from a concentration of 25mg/mL and boiled it for 10 min. From this preparation we used concentrations of 5, 10, 25 and 50% to measure Essiac effects. In this study, we examined the effects of Essiac on free radical scavenging and DNA damage in a non-cellular system, as well as the effects Essiac on lipid peroxidation using the RAW 264.7 cell line. We observed, using electron spin resonance, that Essiac effectively scavenged hydroxyl, up to 84% reduction in radical signal at the 50% tea preparation concentration, and superoxide radicals, up to 82% reduction in radical signal also at the 50% tea preparation concentration, as well as prevented hydroxyl radical-induced DNA damage. In addition, Essiac inhibited hydroxyl radical-induced lipid peroxidation by up to 50% at the 50% tea preparation concentration. These data indicate that Essiac tea possesses potent antioxidant and DNA-protective activity, properties that are common to natural anti-cancer agents. This study may help to explain the mechanisms behind the reported anti-cancer effects of Essiac.

[Limitations of sentinel lymph node biopsy in breast cancer]

Sentinel lymph node biopsy is a widely accepted new surgical procedure in the treatment of early breast cancer. However, not only numerous details of the technique, but also limitations of the method, such as maximal tumor size, multifocal disease, accuracy following neoadjuvant chemotherapy and appropriateness in ductal carcinoma in situ are being debated. Recent multicenter studies could establish the lower morbidity of sentinel lymph node biopsy compared to axillary clearance as well as the false-negative rate which lies between 7 and 9.7%. In unifocal T1 disease with clinically negative axillary lymph nodes, the method is considered to be standard of care. Evidence is growing that it may also be appropriate in larger and multifocal tumors while the method is unreliable after neoadjuvant chemotherapy.