Una nuova terapia per sconfiggere il cancro è stata scoperta dal Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR).
I ricercatori australiani hanno dimostrato che la bacca dell'albero Blushwood (Hylandia dockrillii, famiglia euforbiacee) può uccidere cancri della testa e del collo, oltre che melanomi.
Nello studio guidato dal farmacologo Glen Boyle, una singola iniezione del farmaco sperimentale derivato dalla bacca, EBC-46, ha portato al rapido degrado di tumori umani.
Nelle sperimentazioni su animali, nel 75% dei casi il tumore è scomparso e non è ritornato. "Il composto agisce in tre modi: uccide le cellule direttamente, fa scattare una risposta cellulare che taglia l'afflusso di sangue al tumore, attiva il sistema immunitario per fare pulizia dei residui", spiega Boyle.
Può tuttavia essere usato solo per tumori accessibili con iniezione diretta e non è efficace contro cancri metastatici. Potrà essere un'opzione aggiuntiva, piuttosto che sostituire la chemioterapia o la chirurgia.
M.Ang./ATS
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