Limited study on anti-cancer potential of dandelion root

The declare: Dandelion root could kill 98% of most cancers cells in 48 hours

For anybody with a inexperienced thumb, the sight of dandelions throughout a manicured garden could also be irritating, however a current Instagram post suggests the hardy yellow flower is potent sufficient to deal with most cancers in simply two days.

“Dandelion root could kill 98% of most cancers cells inside 48hr,” the April 25 put up reads. “Not solely that, but it surely additionally acts as a robust anti-inflammatory, immune booster, antioxidant, and organ detoxifier.”

USA TODAY reached out to the person for touch upon the put up, which has accrued greater than 6,000 interactions on Instagram, in keeping with information supplied by CrowdTangle, a social media analytics software owned by Fb.

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The put up is attributed to Herbacy, an account that describes itself as a useful resource for “pure, dependable, and cost-effective treatments for bettering total well being & wellness.”

Whereas dandelions have been used for hundreds of years as an herbal remedy internationally, it is untimely to label it as a possible treatment for most cancers.

Anti-cancer results not proven in people

There’s some proof to recommend dandelion root extract (or DRE) could have anti-cancer properties.

In research taking a look at melanoma, leukemia and pancreatic cancer, the extract seemed to be useful in coaxing most cancers cells to self-destruct, getting the physique to kill the cells itself, or slowing down most cancers’s total mobile progress.

Nevertheless, so far, there have been no conclusive scientific research suggesting DRE can deal with most cancers in people, according to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

The “48 hours” aspect emerged on-line in a September 2016 article claiming “Scientists Discover Root That Kills 98% of Most cancers Cells in Solely 48 Hours.”

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The article references a 2012 Canadian news story of a 72-year-old man whose aggressive leukemia went into remission after consuming dandelion root tea.

No precise analysis is supplied, however the information article cited did point out that the affected person’s case impressed researchers on the College of Windsor in Ontario to analyze DRE’s potential anti-cancer properties.

In 2016, a gaggle from the college published a study discovering DRE triggered cell demise in additional than 95% of colon most cancers cells inside 48 hours.

However this commentary was primarily based on a petri dish of most cancers cells, which isn’t corresponding to most cancers in a human physique, Siyaram Pandey, professor of chemistry and biochemistry and co-author of the research, instructed USA TODAY.

“Certainly, many of the (most cancers) cells are lifeless inside 48 hours, however that doesn’t imply a affected person who takes dandelion root will probably be cured in 48 hours,” he stated.

Pandey and his group have additionally discovered DRE alongside lemongrass extract appeared therapeutic towards prostate most cancers, the second main reason for most cancers demise within the U.S. according to the American Cancer Society.

A 2019 study discovered cultured prostate most cancers cells uncovered to DRE, LGE and standard chemotherapy medication have been higher at getting the cells to kill themselves in comparison with chemotherapy alone.

Mice transplanted with human prostate most cancers cells, who have been both fed or drank water laced with the extracts, additionally exhibited a lower within the weight and quantity of their tumors.

How precisely is DRE ready to do that? One 2017 study suggests pure compounds within the root could also be concentrating on proteins that promote most cancers cell progress and migration, at the least in gastric most cancers.

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Pandey stated that whereas the accumulating analysis on DRE is encouraging, scientific research are completely obligatory to determine each efficacy and security in people. He really helpful sufferers first seek the advice of their physicians earlier than deciding so as to add DRE to their medical routine.

Our score: Lacking context

The declare that “Dandelion root can kill 98% of most cancers cells in 48 hours,” is MISSING CONTEXT, as a result of with out extra data it may very well be deceptive. There’s analysis on dandelion root as a cancer-fighting substance, however no printed scientific analysis has confirmed an anti-cancer impact in people. The 48-hour time interval is derived from a 2016 research of DRE’s impact on most cancers cells in a petri dish, not in human sufferers. Whereas cell tradition is a useful analysis software, its dynamics will not be corresponding to a human physique.