Quercetin: even more anti-cancer potential than Curcumin?

How I learned about Quercetin’s potential:

Sometime ago I had access to a number of chemosensitivity test results and performed some analysis on them. These chemosensitivity tests are performed by specialized laboratories and essentially consists in collecting blood from patients, capturing the circulating tumor cells and then exposing these tumor cells to various chemicals in order to identify those substances that have the most chance of eradicating the tumor of each patient. After that, the patient can go back to his hospital or a private clinic that can administrate the substance with an improved chance of success. Such test are currently debated but at least may represent a guide for most of us. Similar statistics is available from various labs.

Chemo Sensitivity

Note that in this graph

  • only includes the natural substances and a few synthetic (like DCA), i.e. not included chemo substances. Also, note that it only includes the effective natural substances and many with non or only limited effectiveness were left out
  • average effectiveness represents the average effectiveness of a specific substance across the included number of patients and normalized to the most effective substance in this set
  • chance for effectiveness represents the percentage of cases for which a specific substance is indicated as effective in killing the cancer. So if the number is 100% it means that according to the chemo sensitivity analysis, cancer cells from all patients responded to that specific substance

As we can see from this analysis, the most effective substance and with the highest chance of effectiveness is Quercetin. It looks even better then Curcumin which I already like a lot! According to the above statistics one may argue that patients don’t even need to perform a chemo sensitivity analysis to know that Quercetin may be effective.

Quercetin, as most of the substances in its category, has a poor bio-availability when administrated via oral route. That doesn’t mean that it would not be absorbed, but a lot has to be taken in order to reach the therapeutic dose.

As a results I started to search on understanding more about Quercetin and its anti cancer mechanism and at the same time search for research where Quercetin was administer via IV as this would be the most effective way to reach most tumor locations. After spending a lot of time on this subject, I fortunately found that in some countries Quercetin is administrated in hospitals in IV form to address other health issues than cancer.

Indeed the anti cancer potential of Quercetin is intensively studied in the academic environment so that today there are more than 2000 publications on this subject  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=quercetin+cancer

What is Quercetin

OnionQuercetin is a flavonol found in many fruits, vegetables, leaves and grains. It can be used as an ingredient in supplements, beverages, or foods. Quercetin is one of the most abundant dietary flavonoids with an average daily consumption of 25–50 mgs. It can be found in many vegetables and fruits, and even in honey but when I speak of quercetin I think of onion, so here is an onion picture 🙂

Clinical Trials in Humans

Quercetin was administered intravenous in an ethanol vehicle to six normal human volunteers in 1975 at a fixed dose of 100 mg without side effects. This study also indicated very low oral bioavailability when administrated orally (Ref.)

About 20 years latter, in 1996, another clinical trial has been performed, an escalation Phase I trial using 60 mg/m2 as the starting dose administrated intravenous. (Ref.) The starting dose of 60 mg/m2 was chosen based on the previous volunteer study from 1976. Thereafter, doses were increased so that 1400 mg/m2 as the bolus dose was found as the max safe dose which was suggested for Phase II trials, given either in 3-week or weekly intervals.

Treated patients: the median age was 56 (range, 23-78) years. The tumor histologies of the treated patients were: large bowel, 14; ovary, 10; pancreas, 7; melanoma, 6; stomach, 5; renal, 2; hepatoma, 3; and non-small cell lung, 2. Two patients had other diagnoses: one with testicular teratoma and one with gastrinoma.

Conventionally Phase I trials should lead to a recommendation of the dose to be explored in Phase II trials. However, next to identifying the recommended dose this study has also demonstrated anticancer effects of Quercetin. Specifically, one patient with cisplatin refractory ovarian cancer had a large and sustained fall in serum CA 125 levels.  Another patient with hepatocellular carcinoma had a fall of a-fetoprotein from 460 to 40. (Ref.)

Although this trial clearly demonstrated safety anti cancer effect of quercetin, with a clear conclusion of the authors: “In conclusion, quercetin can be safely administered by i.v. bolus at a dose injection. The plasma levels achieved inhibited lymphocyte tyrosine kinase activity, and evidence of antitumor activity was seen.”, after this trial there was never any next phase performed.

Mechanism:

Quercetin has a wide range of biological activities:

  • Quercetin is known to be a MCT inhibitor (Ref1Ref2.). MCT1 and MCT4 inhibition is associated with anti cancer effects due to mechanisms such as those discussed in a previous post (Ref.), i.e. pH modulation. MCT1 inhibitors are presently developed by pharmaceutical industry as anti cancer drugs. (Ref.) The MCT1 inhibition is also an activity that is know to help against auto immune diseases. As a side note, due to this mechanism, Quercetin can also address eye related diseases such as Keratoconus (Ref.). I personally know someone (a medical doctor) who was treated with IV Quercetin intensively and succeed to cure her eye surprising hospitals who were expecting needs for surgery, etc.
  • It seems to also have Na/K ATPase inhibition capabilities. This action is also well know to lead to anti cancer effects and other substances that are Na/K ATPase inhibitors such as Oleandrin, Ouabain, Bufalin, etc. (i.e. cardiac glycosides) are know to have strong anti cancer effect
  • Inhibits cell cycle at G1 and S phase in vitro, inhibits phosphorylation of protein kinase C (PKC) and tyrosine kinase (Ref.), which ultimately blocks cellular signal transduction leading to decreased tumor growth. Inhibits the ras cascade, which is important for cellular proliferation and induces apoptosis. This is a general class of intra-cellular signals that strongly stimulate cell division. Note: Niclosamide, Mebendazole, Baicalein and Genistein are also Tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
  • Inhibitor of phosphatidyl-3 kinase (Ref.) and l-phosphatidylinosotol-4 kinase also relevant for cardiovascular diseases (Ref.)
  • Antioxidant, anti-platelet (reducing cyclicAMP), and anti-atherogenic activities (Ref.) – the vascular protective effect associated with eNOS up-regulation (Ref.)
  • Vasodilatory action: “During the injection of quercetin, all of the patients experienced transient flushing for up to S mm. This was not associated with a fall in blood pressure, and must therefore be related to dilation of blood vessels smaller than resistance vessels. Quercetin is known to have vasodilator effects, inhibiting the spontaneous myogenic contractions of rat portal vein with an IC50 of 9 uM and reversing phorbol l2-myristate 13-acetateinduced aortic contractions with an IC50 of 1 1 uM (33), suggesting involvement of protein kinase C. Other biological activities of quercetim may have contributed to the vasodilator effect, including inhibition of phosphodiesterases (34).” (Ref.)
  • Anti inflammatory (Inhibits production of leukotrienes and prostaglandins, inhibits lymphocytes, and suppresses macrophage phagocytosis)
  • Antiviral activity: Binds to viral coat and may inhibit nucleic acid synthesis, competitive inhibitor of reverse transcriptase (RefRef1, Ref2Ref3, Ref4, Ref5)
  • Antihistamine: Inhibits the release of histamine and basophils from mast cells in lung and intestinal tissues (Ref1., Ref2.)
  • At low dose anti-oxidant; At high dose pro-oxidant (see https://www.cancertreatmentsresearch.com/?p=1321#comment-1152) To act as an anti oxidant it has to be administrated at low dose and/or together with glutathione (Ref.). To act as a pro oxidant it has to be administrated at high dose or for long time and/or together with a glutathione depliting drug (such as paracetamol).

More about Quercetin potential is discussed in details in the following reference http://www.altmedrev.com/publications/16/2/172.pdf

Formulation & Administration:

Oral administration: As discussed above Quercetin administrated orally is only little absorbed so that it is difficult to reach the therapeutic plasma level. However, if IV administration is not an option I would consider 6g/day as an intensive anti cancer dose against active disease and 1-3g/day as a maintenance dose.

IV administration: The best way do administrate quercetin is intravenous. However, compared to e.g. 3BP, DCA, 2DG or Vitamin C, it is challenging to formulate Quercetin in IV form as it is not water soluble. Quercetin is little soluble in ethanol and this is how it has been used in the firs clinical trial performed in 1976. Yet, they only used 100mg/patient while in the clinical trial from 1996 it has been indicated that the effective safe dose may be around  1400mg/m2. At this dose we would need to use too much ethanol and that is not feasible. As a result, the clinical trial in 1996 have decided to use DMSO to solve Quercetin. This is again a tricky technique since Quercetin solved in DMSO and mixed with water will immediately precipitate. So here is what they did:

Quercetin was made up in DMSO on the day of use and supplied in glass syringes. It was administered via the side arm of a polypropylene giving set through which RIMSO 50 (50% volume DMSO and 50% water) was being slowly injected. A total volume of 50 ml of RIMSO 50 was injected with each quercetin injection. This was essential to prevent precipitation of quercetin in the giving set. The rate of i.v. injection of quercetin at the starting dose of 60 mg/m2 was initially rapid over 30 s, but at doses above 945 mglm2, it was increased to 5 mm because of pain on injection. When the quercetin injection was completed, the drip was left in situ, and 200 ml saline were infused over the succeeding 30 mm.” (Ref.)

Based on the experience from clinical trial the dose can go to higher levels, but above 900mg/m2 we need to make sure the patient is hydrated with 1000ml slaine before and 500ml saline after the Quercetin administration.

Note that as with Curcumin IV, the addition of DMSO may increase the effectiveness of Quercetin so the dose may need to be reduced.

Source:

Capsules: usually found as 500mg capsules and it is very accessible regarding its cost http://www.iherb.com/Quercetin#p=1

Intravenous: as mentioned above Quercetin is administrated in hospitals in one country as a drug against health issues other then cancer. A vial contains 500mg preparation of active bioflavonoid (500mg powder represents 450mg polyvinylpyrrolidone + 50mg Quercetin) and the cost is somewhere in the range of 10-20 euro depending on the source.

Safety and Toxicity:

No clinically significant toxicities were seen until the 10h dose level (1700 mg/m2) when renal toxicity, manifesting as elevation of serum creatinine, occurred. There was no cumulative fall in creatinine clearance with multiple weekly treatments, indicating that any nephrotoxicity due to quercetin was transient and reversible within 7 days. Overall, 2 of 10 patients who were treated at 1400 mg/m2 had clinically significant nephrotoxicity (1 patient with grade 4, and 1 patient with grade 2).

One patient treated at 630 mg/m2 developed grade 3 renal toxicity, with elevation of the serum creatinine to 420 uM by day 10. By day 21 this patient’s serum creatinine had normalized (Fig. 2C).
This patient was keen for additional therapy and was therefore retreated, but with prehydration of 1 liter normal saline given over 1h, and after quercetin treatment, 0.5 liter 5% dextrose was given; there was no fall in creatinine clearance. The next course in this patient was given at 945 mg/m2 with hydration, and no renal toxicity ensued. In other patients, hydration was given before bolus injection of quercetin at 945 mg/m2, and the pretreatment clearance was 82.3 ± 6.7 mI/mm. Thus, a simple outpatient hydration schedule abrogated falls in creatinine clearance.

After the above experience, it has been concluded the following: “Subsequently, as other patients were studied, it became clear that simple i.v. prehydration could at least partially abrogate the nephrotoxicity of quercetin. With this in mind, the ernesis and the pain on injection, we believe that 1400 mg/rn2 given weekly or every 3 weeks can be recommended for Phase II trials.” (Ref.).

Based on this the adverse reactions can be: flushing, sweating. Nephrotoxicity may occur with IV bolus infusions >945 mg/m2.

Pharmacokinetics:

The serum levels achieved immediately after injection of quercetin were in the range of 200-400 uM at 945 mg/m2, with serum levels above 1 uM being maintained up to 4 h. The distribution half-life was $ 0.7-7.8 min, with a median of 6 min. The elimination half-life was 3.8-86 min, with a median of 43 min (Ref.).

Other References:

Antiviral activity of quercetin against japanese encephalitis virus http://www.google.com/patents/WO2014142645A1?cl=en

The present invention provides an antiviral medicament for treating Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV) infection comprises a natural flavonoid compound namely quercetin. In the present invention, antiviral activity of quercetin was evaluated against JEV replication in African green monkey kidney cell line (Vero). Anti-JEV activities of quercetin were examined at different stages of JEV replication cycle. The effects of quercetin on virus replication were determined from Foci Forming Unit Reduction Assay (FFURA) and quantitative RT-PCR.

Oxidized quercetin reacts with thiols rather than with ascorbate: implication for quercetin supplementationhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12914787

When an antioxidant scavenges a reactive species, i.e., when it exerts its antioxidant activity, the antioxidant is converted into potentially harmful oxidation products. In this way, the antioxidant quercetin might yield an ortho-quinone, denoted as QQ, which has four tautomeric forms, i.e., the ortho-quinone and three quinonmethides. We evaluated the interaction of QQ with ascorbate or glutathione (GSH). Ascorbate recycles QQ to the parent compound quercetin, while GSH forms two adducts with QQ, i.e., 6-GSQ and 8-GSQ. When both GSH and ascorbate are present, QQ is converted exclusively into GSQ. In the absence of GSH, protein thiols will be arylated by QQ. This protein arylation is not prevented by ascorbate. Thiol arylation by quinones and quinonmethides can impair several vital enzymes. This implies that the product formed when quercetin displays its antioxidant scavenging effect is toxic in the absence of GSH. Therefore, an adequate GSH level should be maintained when quercetin is supplemented.

Interfering with ROS Metabolism in Cancer Cells: The Potential Role of Quercetin. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24281116

A main feature of cancer cells, when compared to normal ones, is a persistent pro-oxidative state that leads to an intrinsic oxidative stress. Cancer cells have higher levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) than normal cells, and ROS are, in turn, responsible for the maintenance of the cancer phenotype. Persistent ROS stress may induce adaptive stress responses, enabling cancer cells to survive with high levels of ROS and maintain cellular viability. However, excessive ROS levels render cancer cells highly susceptible to quercetin, one of the main dietary flavonoids. Quercetin depletes intracellular glutathione and increases intracellular ROS to a level that can cause cell death.

Essential requirement of reduced glutathione (GSH) for the anti-oxidant effect of the flavonoid quercetin Ref.
We have analyzed the anti- or pro-oxidant effects of the flavonoid quercetin (QU) by evaluating, in U937 cell line, hydrogenperoxide (H2O2), superoxide anion O2-; reduced glutathione (GSH) content, mitochondrial membrane potential, DNAcontent,  phosphatidylserine  exposure  on  the  outer  face  of  the  plasma  membrane  and  cell  viability.  Polychromatic  flowcytometry was used to evaluate in the same cells several functional parameters. For short periods of treatment QU exerted ananti-oxidant effect (decrease in H2O2levels), whereas for long periods it showed a pro-oxidant activity (increase in O2-). Inthese conditions, GSH content was reduced, and this correlated with a lack of anti-oxidant activity of QU, which in turn couldbe correlated with proapoptotic activity of this molecule. Thus, QU can exert different effects (anti-/prooxidant) depending onexposure times and oxidative balance, and in particular on stores of GSH

Disclaimer:

This site is not designed to and does not provide medical advice, professional diagnosis, opinion, treatment or services to you or to any other individual. Through this site and linkages to other sites, I provide general information for educational purposes only. The information provided in this site, or through linkages to other sites, is not a substitute for medical or professional care, and you should not use the information in place of a visit, call consultation or the advice of your physician or other healthcare provider. I am not liable or responsible for any advice, course of treatment, diagnosis or any other information, services or product you obtain through this site. This is just my own personal opinion regarding what we have learned on this road.

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64 thoughts on “Quercetin: even more anti-cancer potential than Curcumin?

  1. amazing !

    the iv source , can I know how to get it 😀

    another question about Quercetin : is it working as an anti-oxidant like curcumin ? maybe its not a right decision to combine it with chemotherapy !

  2. Regarding your question on the anti oxidant properties of Quercetin: Its same as Curcumin. Reasons to use and reasons not to use. There are multiple studies suggesting it will help chemo.
    Actually in the clinical trial I cited above, the lady with ovarian cancer who responded to the treatment continued Quercetin IV whole combining with chemo and with good results. Here is a quote from the article: “Her response to this chemotherapy was minor, and her serum CA 125 was rising progressively, reaching a level of 290 units/mI. Following treatment
    with two courses of quercetin at 420 mg/rn2, her CA 125 fell to 55 units/ml (Fig. 4B). This patient was treated with three additional courses of quercetin at 500 mg/m2 [combined with carboplatin AUC 4 (26) as part of a trial of quercetin plus carboplatin], 4 and 6 months after going on study her CA 125 was 45 units/mi, fulfilling recently suggested criteria for marker response in this disease.”

  3. I am a Physician. My wife has colon cancer and I have been looking for less toxic avenues.

    We have used tetrathiomolybdate, IV C, IV Curcumen.

    I am interested in finding the IV quercetin can you send me a link?

    1. Dear Tom, I am sorry to hear that. I will send you an e-mail regarding the source on Quercetin. Beyond that, I would very much appreciate any questions/feedback/suggestions/comments on this website.

      1. Daniel,

        My wife is suffering from liver cancer and we are in the process of trying to create several IV’s from extracts in liposomal forms. We were excited when we were directed to your article and the possibility of having Quercetin (which has been effective on my wife’s cancer cells in the lab) already in IV form. Could you direct me in purchasing this?

        Thank you very much!

        1. Dear Tim, the IV version is used in Ukraine as a heart drug. So you would need to find a pharmacy there that is willing to send it to you or your doctor. In order to do that they usually ask a bit more than its actual cost but still very accessible.
          Beyond Quercetin, have you considered the application of chemo by TACE? It may work well for liver without the typical side effects of chemo.

          1. Thank you Daniel. Do you happen to have any contact info. for such a pharmacy (this is a new world for me and I’m finding it very difficult to navigate). We’ve already had a similar procedure as the TACE using the Y90 beads. We’re now needing to find a way to treat systemically since it has spread. Thanks for any help you can provide.

      2. Daniel,

        I have advanced triple negative breast ductal carcinoma. I would like to know how Zi can purchase both curcumin and quercetin for IVs? I have an ND that can administer them.

        Karen

        1. Hi Karen,

          Please see the list of compounding pharmacies I added here: https://www.apotheke-koenigstein-app.de
          For Curcumin you can consider these two
          Pure Curcumin IV –> https://www.apotheke-koenigstein-app.de
          Whole plant extract –> https://uniqsana.de
          Quercetin is made as a drug in a country in Europe but the dose is too small for anti cancer activities, so best is to ask these compunding pharmacies if they can make it for you.

          For TNBC you may also want to read the info I added below on 3 treatment that may be relevant.

          I hope this helps.

          Kind regards,
          Daniel

          1. Bicalutamide
          Here is a case of a heavily pretreated woman with metastatic TNBC and AR expression who achieved a complete clinical response after 4 months of treatment with the AR antagonist bicalutamide.
          According to this article and case report, complete response could be obtained in some triple negative breast cancers when the patinet is treated with a common drug used for prostate cancer called Bicalutamide. Bicalutamide is a androgen receptor antagonist and it seems that 10% to 32% of the triple negative breast cancers have androgen receptors that can be targeted by Bicatulamide.
          Reference: Complete Response of Metastatic Androgen Receptor–Positive Breast Cancer to Bicalutamide: Case Report and Review of the Literature http://ascopubs.org/doi/full/10.1200/jco.2013.49.8899

          2. Estradiol
          Another form of estrogen receptor — called estrogen beta — is present in 25 percent of triple-negative tumors, as well as in over 30 percent of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer tumors. Research showed that the estrogen receptor beta is a tumor suppressor, which correlates with better patient outcomes.
          “Remarkably,” claims Hawse, “we discovered that estradiol, which normally stimulates [the] growth of cancer cells in tumors that express estrogen receptor alpha, has the opposite effect in triple-negative breast cancer.” https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323281.php
          Here is the research paper demonstrating the anti-cancer effects of Estradiol: ERβ-mediated induction of cystatins results in suppression of TGFβ signaling and inhibition of triple-negative breast cancer metastasis. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30257941
          Mayo researchers identify potential new treatment for subset of women with triple-negative breast cancer https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-researchers-identify-potential-new-treatment-for-subset-of-women-with-triple-negative-breast-cancer/

          3. Clofazimine
          Towards the first targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer: Repositioning of clofazimine as a chemotherapy-compatible selective Wnt pathway inhibitor https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30771433 Wnt signaling is overactivated in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and several other cancers, and its suppression emerges as an effective anticancer treatment. However, no drugs targeting the Wnt pathway exist on the market nor in advanced clinical trials. Here we provide a comprehensive body of preclinical evidence that an anti-leprotic drug clofazimine is effective against TNBC. Clofazimine specifically inhibits canonical Wnt signaling in a panel of TNBC cells in vitro. In several mouse xenograft models of TNBC, clofazimine efficiently suppresses tumor growth, correlating with in vivo inhibition of the Wnt pathway in the tumors. Clofazimine is well compatible with doxorubicin, exerting additive effects on tumor growth suppression, producing no adverse effects. Its excellent and well-characterized pharmacokinetics profile, lack of serious adverse effects at moderate (yet therapeutically effective) doses, its combinability with cytotoxic therapeutics, and the novel mechanistic mode of action make clofazimine a prime candidate for the repositioning clinical trials. Our work may bring forward the anti-Wnt targeted therapy, desperately needed for thousands of patients currently lacking targeted treatments.

  4. Daniel, I found this regarding to Quercetin :
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4443283/

    Please find these sentences :
    “… short-term treatment with quercetin was found to induce antioxidative and antiapoptotic effects, while long-term treatment resulted in pro-oxidative and proapoptotic effects (Ferraresi et al., 2005). Therefore, the uncontrolled consumption of quercetin may interfere with and weaken the effects of anticancer therapy rather than help it.”

    What is your opinion to avoid pro-oxidative and pro-apoptotic effects of Quercetin?
    What is “short-term” and “long-term”?
    Can we use it in intervals to avoid such effects?

    Thanks in advance.

  5. Thanks for the link Tugrul. This seems to be a behavior similar to that of Vitamin C, i.e. at low dose antioxidant at high dose pro oxidant. While we have to wait for more research to clearly consider its action, and while this was only shown in one type of cancer cells, to be on the safe side I would indeed conclude for now that we either consider high dose of Quercetin (i.e. IV or high oral dose). Preventive doses can indeed be on the low side (1-3g/day). However, note that its anti cancer effects are not only related to anti or pro-oxidant effects. I do know experienced doctors in Germany who are combining Quercetin (relatively low dose) and Curcumin with Chemo and have good results.

    1. Tugrul, I was traveling during teh days before but now I found more time to study the article at the link you sent me (and its references) and here is an improved understanding on how/when Quercetin acts as an anti oxidant and when as a prooxidant:
      1. Quercetin reacts with intracellular ROS to create harmful oxidation products –> strong pro-oxidant (see reference 1 below)
      2. However, at low dose of Quercetin intracellula glutathione cancels out the pro-oxidant effect of Quercetin so that Quercetin acts as an anti oxidant (see reference 2 below)
      3. If the cell is treated long enough with Quercetin, or at doses high enough, the intracellular glutathione is depleted and as a result Quercetin starts to act as pro oxidant.
      Quote from the reference below: “Thus, it appears that prolonged or strong treatment with QU induces depletion of GSH stores. As a consequence, ROS are no longer scavenged and the pro-oxidant effect prevails on the anti-oxidant effect” (see reference 2 below)

      So the conclusion above remains, i.e. probably best is to use Quercetin IV or high doses of the oral version. However, what is new to me is that depletion of glutathione will directly help Quercetin’s action …. note that e.g. 3BP will also deplete intracellular GSH so it makes very much sense to administrate Quercetin after 3BP. Other ways to reduce GSH are discussed here https://www.cancertreatmentsresearch.com/?p=970

      References:
      1: Oxidized quercetin reacts with thiols rather than with ascorbate: implication for quercetin supplementation. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12914787
      2: Essential requirement of reduced glutathione (GSH) for the anti-oxidanteffect of the flavonoid quercetin https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7469403_Ferraresi_R_et_al_Essential_requirement_of_reduced_glutathione_GSH_for_the_anti-oxidant_effect_of_the_flavonoid_quercetin_Free_Radic_Res_39_1249-1258

  6. Daniel,
    My father has intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. Chemotherapy is generally not very effective at treating. Would you advise combining chemo with iv quercetin (and/or iv vitamin C – a bit confused on the attached study (posted by Tugrul)- sounds like it works, then stops working??)
    I too would need to know how to get the IV quercetin. We are in U.S., but would travel internationally for the right treatment. Thank you.

    1. Hi TJ, I am sorry. The point regarding Quercetin (that applies to others such as Curcumin and Vitamin C) is that when taken in low dose (which is usually the case for oral administration) they seem to act as anti-oxidants. However in high doses (which is the case for IV administration since all goes directly in the blood) they act as PRO oxidants. Typically Chemo is pro oxidant and if we use other treatments in combo is probably best to use pro oxidants too in order do help Chemo effects and not cancel out that. At least this is my personal believe.

      I was just checking cholangiocarcinoma and an interesting option may be DCA + Omeprazole since they were effective in a cholangiocarcinoma patient:
      Co-treatment of dichloroacetate, omeprazole and tamoxifen exhibited synergistically antiproliferative effect on malignant tumors: in vivo experiments and a case report. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22580646?dopt=Abstract&holding=npg

      Since it is epithelial cancer I would strongly consider to combine chemo with Salinomycin. I just wrote this sentence and than I checked in pubmed and here is a recent research from Germany suggesting the same:

      Impact of Salinomycin on human cholangiocarcinoma: induction of apoptosis and impairment of tumor cell proliferation in vitro. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23057720
      In this study, we are able to demonstrate that Salinomycin is an effective agent against previously resistant CC cells and might be a potential candidate for the treatment of CC in the future.

      And when going for chemo I would always consider these options to improve that https://www.cancertreatmentsresearch.com/?p=970

      I hope this helps.

  7. But combining Curcumin with Quercetin , should we use lower doses of Quercetin to make it act as anti-oxidant just like curcumin ???

    Curcumin is acting like anti-oxidant that’s what I know !

    1. Hi Emad, there are so many processes behind Curcumin that make it difficult to fit it in one category only. There are many scientific articles showing its activity as a pro oxidant too. For example:

      Aggeli IK, Koustas E, Gaitanaki C, Beis I. Curcumin Acts as a Pro-Oxidant Inducing Apoptosis Via JNKs in the Isolated Perfused Rana ridibunda Heart. Journal of experimental zoology Part A, Ecological genetics and physiology. 2013;319:328–339. [PubMed]

      Reuss DE, Mucha J, Hagenlocher C, Ehemann V, Kluwe L, Mautner V, et al. Sensitivity of malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor cells to TRAIL is augmented by loss of NF1 through modulation of MYC/MAD and is potentiated by curcumin through induction of ROS. PloS one. 2013;8:e57152. [PMC free article] [PubMed]

      Bhullar KS, Jha A, Youssef D, Rupasinghe HP. Curcumin and its carbocyclic analogs: structure-activity in relation to antioxidant and selected biological properties. Molecules. 2013;18:5389–5404. [PubMed]

      Based on my experience it works well with Quercetin. Based on experienced doctors in Germany it works well given in alternative days with chemo. Note that strong anti oxidants such as Alpha Lipoic Acid or NAC on the other hand are not working well with Chemo, specifically when administrated IV – also from experience.

      So, with Curcumin I would not be worried. And remember, that there are processes via which an element can lead to cancer cell death other than anti- or pro-oxidant.

      Nevertheless, when we want to combine an element with another and we suspect they may work one against each other, we better make a choice between the two. Or, one cycle we combine them and the other not, while tracking the markers in the search for the best working point.

  8. I love the picture above (chemo sensitivity test)

    I think this is the best key for beating cancer , all patients should run this test to know which treatment is the best for them

    so I have some questions in my mind

    first : this test is it really accurate and can make us know which treatments will work good and which one the cancer can resist ?

    second : in your experience : how much will cost for running this test ?

    third : can this test performed for a wide range of treatments ? like testing for 3-BP , Salinomycin …etc ?

    the last question regarding Quercetin : the IV source that costs 20 euro , for a patient that weigh 80KG , does he/she needs 1 vial for 1 day ? or 2 vials or more ???

    thank you so much Daniel 🙂

    1. Hi Emad,

      1. the validity of tests is debated by many and believed by others. the debate is related to:
      – how the sample is collected. one way is to collect blood from patient and capture circulating tumor cells and the other way is to provide tumor samples. The questions is if when collecting circulating tumpr cells from the patient, the right cells are collected (other cells may be present in the blood such as those from the skin when a needle is used to colect the blood). If tumor sample is provoded than there is no question anymore
      – how the chemosensitivity is performed. one way is to analyze genetic profile of the cells and based on various gene alteration suggest various chemo or natural treatments. the question here is if the right chemo is indicated based on the genetic profile, i.e. is the model right? the other way is to test chemos or natural treatments against the sample and see what kills the tumor cells. If the sample is circulating tumor cells, these have to be first grown in the lab and then tested and the question is if growing them we do not also change the genetic profile as you get new populations. the best in this case is again to have tumor sample.
      So to address both issues best is to have tumor sample. That is best. The tests based on circulating tumor cells is more questionable.
      2. is costs between 1500 and 3000 euro for one test depending on various options (genetic profile? chemosensitivity? natural substances?)
      3. yes
      4. I just learned that the IV contains 50mg Quercetin. I think this means that we can use one or two vials each day, 5 days/week or more vials (as in teh clinical trial) but only once every few weeks do to the potential toxicity of higher dose
      5. this you didn’t asked but you may ask: various labs performing such analysis are RGCC, Metavectum, etc.

  9. Thank you so much for Answering all these questions Daniel 🙂

    unfortunately , new questions are coming :

    To have a tumor sample for testing , is it available ? expensive or not ?

    regarding Quercetin : do you notice a good response with it ? I thought the normal dose is 500mg to 1g , only 50mg sounds very little !

    and the Curcumin IV I heard about prices like 40 Euro for 100mg vial , this is very expensive comparing to the doses we need

    I have to think carefully to know what’s the best thing to add

    last time I added Artemisia Annua 500mg capsule , 5g daily , with the DCA + chemo + Mebendazol 200mg + Lansoprazol 60mg + Propanolol 80mg + Metformin 1g , I hope all of that will give us a good result next week

    Sal + MG are still not easy for us to have them right now , hope things get better soon 🙂

    1. Yes, tumor samples can be tested and the price depends on the test.
      Quercetin: One vial has 50mg and more can be used, in theory ultimately we would use maybe 10 vials (or more) at the same time but in that case we would only do it every two or three weeks. That would mean about 200 euro every two or three weeks so that should be fine. B
      Curcumin: 40 euro for 100mg is fair assuming that is a good source, i.e. effective. In Germany they use between 150mg and 400mg/m2. That means that for a person of 50kg the cost for an IV would be between around 80 and 200 euro.
      Artemisia Annua was suggested in the clinical trials at higher dose than that.
      Mebendazole: we started at 200mg and went even up to 1000mg/day with no issue.

  10. Daniel

    the tumor markers fall again from 560 to 450
    its good that it went down again after all , but its still not as good as the previous results
    anyway , thank you so much for your continues help and support 🙂
    for now , we decided to get IV Quercetin And IV Curcumin
    but I’m still worried about somethings , I will really appreciate if you answer my questions
    I know that you use both Quercetin IV and Curcumin IV together with a very good result
    but are you sure that both are effective ? maybe just one of them are giving this good effect ?
    I’m asking you that because of our limited financial resource
    if the strength of Quercetin IV is questionable , then we will pay only for Curcumin IV
    I hope that the both are really effective in your own experience
    the other question :-
    when you have 500mg IV Quercetin + 1gram IV Curcumin + Chemo + DCA + Artemisia Annua
    Would you combine them all ? or if not , which of them should be separated from (chemo + DCA + Art) ???
    the last thing :-
    the maximum dose we can buy for this combination is : 10 vials of Quercetin (500mg) + 10 vials Curcumin (1g) , every 3 weeks
    this is about 800 dollars every month
    in your experience , are this combination can be a stand alone treatment ? comparing them to chemo , are they likely to be stronger or still weaker than chemo ?

    sorry for these all questions , God bless you 🙂

    1. Hi Emad,

      Great to hear that the tumor markers went down again.
      What was the difference compared to last time in terms of treatment?
      You ask me if I am sue that a treatment is effective … Well, I hope you do not expect me to answer this question 🙂
      Who can be sure?
      If I would do Chemo, I would combine that with Salinomycin IV instead of Curcumin IV and Quercetin IV. I would also consider to add Artesunate IV and DCA IV (next to the oral version you are now using) just because you saw they are working, at least DCA.
      Regarding your last question: What I think can be as strong as chemo is Salinomycin IV, Diflunisal IV, 3BP IV and maybe Methylglyoxal IV (still to be verified MG). These are core treatments to me. The others I would consider them as supportive not because of their effectiveness against cancer in general, but because the effectiveness depends on the source and pharmacokinetics in various people.
      Btw, Emad, what is your background?

  11. the last 3 weeks our protocol was :-

    DCA 20mg/kg (5 days on 2 days off) , with chemo + 5g Artemisia annua capsules (5days/week) + 200mg Mebendazole + Lansoprazol 60mg + Metformin 1g + propranolol 80mg

    but sometimes I feel like the cancer has been more aggressive

    you mentioned that Sal , Diflu , 3BP and MG IV are maybe the only core treatments that can be as strong as chemo , but saying that means that you always using one of these core treatments ?

    I favored Curcumin and Quercetin because of they are very safe and already prepared in vials

    the best protocol my mother could have is (low dose chemo + DCA + Artemisia + Curcumin + Quercetin + Sal Orally + MG orally)

    i don’t know how cancer can survive all of that , but the last chance for us will be selling our house so we can go to any clinic in this whole world , 200,000 USD should be enough to end this game for good , or that’s what i think

    anyway , regarding your last question : I’m a fourth year medical student , and also a web application programmer (web designer)

    not enough to help you with your research , so this is a bad thing to know about me 🙂

    my best wishes for you .

    1. Hi Emad, thanks for the details on the treatment protocol you used.
      Yes, depending on various things, we did used many times this with the exception of MG.
      Clear, sounds like you already have a choice 🙂 I would not use Sal orally as also discussed before. Where do you get Curcumin and Quercetin? Yes when something is already prepared in vials it is easier.
      I would not sell the house and go to the clinics. I think what you can do at home more – and you will probably finish your medical studies soon – as a medical doctor based on what you know now is more than the clinics around the world can do. I know people who spent much more than that and they are still searching for a solution. So dont sell your house – the battle may be much longer. Off course this is just my opinion.
      Btw, I jusr remembered: I do not know if I mentioned but Baicalein seems to be effective against breast cancer and City of Hope in USA intended to start a clinical trial on that. Because is also an Iron chelator I discussed this one in the post on Vitamin C – there you can also find a link where the whole plant containing Baicalein can be ordered.
      Nice to hear you are going to be a medical doctor. Did you already made a choice for the specialty?

  12. I still need to ask you where can i find Quercetin hhhhhh 😀
    even the curcumin i will get it from the same source you mentioned before
    about the clinics , maybe i know a lot now thanks to you of course 🙂 , but still its hard for me to buy from western chemical suppliers even when my father is a professor in engineering college in the university of Tripoli
    and still its hard for me to prepare IVs , managing side effects that could happen with Sal , like TLS if it happened !
    or bleeding from the colon in case using Diflu , i lost hope from 3BP , it needs someone who have a good experience on how to administrate it
    you have the experience in using all of that , so you can have better results without going to a clinic
    okay oneday i will learn about all of that , but it will take time , and the cancer will not wait for me until that , if the time runs out we will never have another choice other than asking clinics for help
    or you can get your self a clinic so i can pay for your help 😀
    regarding Baicalein , yes you mentioned it several times , i wanted to ask you if there is any interaction may happen with Artemisia ?
    Artemisia needs iron to kill cancer , and Baicalein is chelating it ?
    if there is no interaction with it or with other pro oxidants , i will love to use it , do you have ideas about the therapeutic dose of it ?
    and any good source from iherb or amazon

    regarding your last question : i hate to be an oncologist , but i have no other choice , hope i continue studying , because i stopped for more than 12 months just to learn and find how to beat cancer .
    I’m lucky to find this blog 🙂
    and I’m more lucky to have a long conversation with you 😀

    1. Thanks for the nice words Emad. I think you should continue on the medical route as there is no better thing you can do in life than helping people at this point in life as much as you can. And I am sure you will be a very good oncologist.

      Regarding your question on Artemisia vs Baicalein: yes that is a very good point. I was thinking about that many times before and initially was going with the same concept, i.e. don’t use them together but if possible even supplement with Iron before Artemisinin administration. But as we have seen a recent post on Vitamin C, there is a reference from Nature magazine that demonstrates experimentally the fact that Iron chelation may actually help Vitamin C effectiveness. As you probably know, Vitamin C is also interacting with Iron to produce e.g. H2O2, and since there is high chance to interact with the Iron in the blood, it will never get to the tumor. And in my view, the same story applies to Vitamin C: Iron chelation will help Artemisia get to the tumor. But don’t worry, tumors know how to get what they need, so they will have enough Iron inside to react with Artemisia components when they get there. And in the case in which Baicalein did such a good job at chelation Iron so that will lower the Iron content in the tumor cells, that is great as this will slow down or stop the cellular division and finally will lead to cancer cell death. So from a theoretical point of view, we can argue that Artemisia and Baicalein is even a great combination.
      I hope this answers your question 🙂

  13. Hi I like your Chemo sensitivity test chart, and are interested in getting most of these items compounded into tablet form. The issue I have is what is the therapeutic level of each of one these if used orally?

    lycopene
    Super artemisinin
    Ascorbic acid
    Genistein
    Fucoidan
    Resveratrol
    Indol 3 Carbinol
    Paw Paw
    Quercetin
    Curcumin
    Baicalein
    Apigenin
    Honokiol

    ouabain – looks good but could be too toxic for everyday use.

    any information would be great.

    1. Hi Darren, these are a lot of questions condensed in one. Please, do your research, write down what is the outcome of that and I will comment on it. Please note that Quercetin, Curcumin, Ascorbic Acid doses have been already addressed in my posts.

  14. Hi Daniel thanks for getting back to me.
    I am thinking the following levels are ok.

    lycopene 45mg
    Artemisinin 200mg
    Ascorbic acid 2000mg
    Genistein 44mg
    Fucoidan 100mg
    Resveratrol 500mg
    Indol 3 Carbinol 600mg
    Paw Paw – not sure on dosage
    Quercetin 3000mg
    Curcumin Bcm95 2400mg
    Baicalein -not sure on dosage
    Apigenin 100mg
    Honokiol 2000 mg

    plus
    Hihydroquercetin-3-Rhamnoside 10mg
    French maritime pine bark extract 30mg
    Beta-1,3/1,6-D-Glucan Powder (from Saccharomyces cerevisiae) 1000mg

    Any input or comments would be great

    1. My opinion:

      Lycopene: 150mg
      Artemisinin: discussed in the dedicated post on this website
      Ascorbic Acid: several grams/day but better IV
      Genistein: discussed in a specific post (please use the search function)
      Fucoidan: 3x300mg capsules
      Resveratrol: 500mg
      I3C: not sure
      PawPaw: 6 capsules or more/day https://www.naturessunshine.com/us/product/paw-paw-cell-reg-180-caps/515/
      Quercetin: as discussed in the post I wrote on Quercetin depending on activity
      Curcumin: as discussed in the post I wrote on Curcumin depending on activity up to 12g/day
      Baicalein: depends on the source – if pure than 600mg to 1g/day
      Apigenin: 150mg/day
      Honokiol: 3g/day or more

      However, I think others are very important and maybe more important then using some of the above. Some you will find when reading my early posts but have no time to write more. I hope this helps.

      I hope others will add their view here so that we all learn from each other.

  15. Hi,

    My mother has Stage IV pancreatic cancer. We are planning on using IV admin of Vitamin c, d. I have read your site and would ask if you could share with me your source for IV curcumin and quercertin?

    Also, any specific protocol for pancreatic cancer?

    Thanks for all your information. I have enjoyed reading your site!

  16. Hi Brian, thanks for the positive feedback. I am sorry to hear that. Most of the research I am sharing here is looking from angles that captures most cancers, including pancreatic. If I think of pancreatic challenges I am thinking of a mean I was in contact with sometime ago who was stage iv and had great results with Diflunisal.
    Regarding the source for curcumin and quercetin, please see the page of curcumin for IV sources on that. For quercetin I will send you an e-mail to shortly with the link.
    I think Vit C and Curcumin and Quercetin are very good but that should be next to some core treatments like Diflunisal or Salinomycin or 3BP or Chemo or others.

    1. While I very much believe in the potential behind Quercetin, I find the claims at the website you suggest at least questionable, for example this claim “This will certainly cure (your) cancer!”. How can you support that claim?

      1. I am very convinced that this combination is a cure against cancer. The quercetin can work just as good as chemotherapy, if it has free radicals in order to kill cancer cells, but without toxicity to normal cells.

  17. Hi Daniel,

    Any thoughts on beta carotene supplementation, dosage and its role in cancerous cell differentiation and metastasis inhibitor / apoptosis?

  18. I’m not sure if this was covered in the post in a more elaborate way but Quercetin can be used as an anti-telomerase compound.

    Cells have telomeres at the end of chromosomes, and with each subsequent cell division, these telomeres become shorter until eventually they become so short that they activate a cell signal to stop replicating. Cancer cells have a mechanism in which they upregulate telomerase, which controls the length of telomeres, to continually lengthen the telomeres, which gives them infinite replicative potential.

    You’re probably aware of all of this but maybe an explanation is helpful if someone else reads this.

    Quercetin and other flavonoids are known inhibitors of telomerase.

    I think it’s an interesting avenue of treatment; differing somewhat from the metabolic hallmark and moving onto a different hallmark.

    1. Hi Meech, thanks for your contribution. I did not know that Quercetin may have anti-telomerase action. Can you please share the link to the reference? I do know that e.g. Berberine, Melatotin, Pyrimethamine may inhibit anti-telomerase action.
      I studied this field sometime ago https://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,65701,67.htm?mid=615630 but I was left some questions such as: What is the impact of telomerase inhibition on normal cells (since tel activation is used as anti-aging strategy) assuming we find an effective one? Once, when I find the time I will go deeper into this subject but if you like the subject and have the time to study, I would be glad to hear your findings. I also invite those who I appreciate to write articles which can be published here. On this line, I would be glad to publish your first article here (with you as the author, off course).

  19. Thanks for the offer, Daniel! I will let you know if/when I’m knowledgeble enough on any one substance to write an article.

    The information I got was here: http://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs-wm/40895.pdf

    There are contradictory studies posted about Quercetin however and there appears to be some debate. They also mention Resveratrol and Tannic Acid as inhibitors of telomerase.

    Here as well: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/21902895/

    I’ve found this quote about effects on normal cells:

    “Second, while telomerase is not detected in most normal tissues (Wright et al., 1996 and Forsyth et al., 2002), inhibitors of telomerase would potentially have detrimental effects on those human cells that do express telomerase, such as hematopoetic progenitor cells, germline cells, and other cells of the renewal tissues such as the epidermis and intestinal crypts (Forsyth et al., 2002). Although so-called transient amplifying cells divide rapidly, the deeper stem cells from which they derive only rarely enter the proliferative compartment (Mahmud et al., 2001). During the time that these stem cells are quiescent, telomerase activity is negligible (Forsyth et al., 2002). Telomerase inhibitor effects on stem cells may thus be minor because these telomerase-competent cells only proliferate intermittently and typically have much longer telomeres than cancer cells. In addition, although telomerase-specific inhibitors would shorten the telomeres in the proliferating transient amplifying stem cells, it would not cause their immediate death; thus, typical therapeutic side effects such as hair loss or nausea are unlikely to be major immediate side effects of antitelomerase cancer therapy.”

    http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1535610802001599

    1. hi Meech and Daniel

      seemingly lots of anti cancer supplements have telomerase actions, i was not aware buts is good to know that nautral compounds act in dozens of way.

      EGCG, Rezveratrol, Genistein, Curcmin and Garlic are all anti telomerase. dosing is important as some compounds are pro telomerase in small doses. and then again…. some cancers are more sensitive in this regard…some less. Frustrating complexity.

      https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3251731/
      http://www.anti-agingfirewalls.com/2009/06/11/do-resveratrol-curcumin-and-egcg-from-green-tea-really-inhibit-the-expression-of-telomerase/ (nice links on this link )

      1. and EGCG is the strongest inhibitor according to many studies. Its not the first time EGCG is the strongest in something (same for DNA methylation inhibiton cability of natural compounds ). How many oncologist suggest patient take EGCG?

  20. @daniel, great article. I’ve been trying to locate a reliable source of IV Quercetin and Curcumin here in Thailand for a while now. I would be greatly appreciative if you could share your source for Quercetin. Thanks so much and hope to hear back from you 🙂

    1. Hi, thank you. I do not have any specific source I could recommend to you at this point. What I used before was at too low dose for anticancer effects. I would suggest you contact a compounding pharmacy and ask them to prepare that for you. In Germany they do have other natural substances prepared IV such as Resveratrol, Apigenin, etc. so I see no reason why they can not prepare Quercetin as long as you are accepting the solubility agents they are using (like Castor oil). Kind regards, Daniel

  21. Hi Daniel,

    Thanks so much for all the efforts in answering people questions!

    My dad was diagnosed with multiple myeloma two years ago. He did the chemo CYBORD regimen protocol and a bone marrow transplant. The myeloma was gone but in November last year, he was diagnosed with bile duct/ pancreatic cancer. He got radiation for pancreatic cancer and no it’s under control. But the Myeloma is back again and strong. The doctor is refusing to give him chemo because his body is weak and has very low red blood cells count and every week gets two units of blood. Since the only hope left was natural therapies I started giving him a lot of supplements one of them is Quercitin.

    The quercetin brand I give him is Natural Factors Quercetin EMIQ which has a 50mg of quercetin per capsule but suppose to have a very high absorbability rate and bio-availability up to 40 times.

    My questions and according to the oral dose recommended are:

    shall I give him 180 tablets from Natural Factors Quercetin EMIQ at once to get the 9 grams? for how long(days)?
    and then 60 tablets every day for maintenance? for how long(days)?
    Can I open the capsules and mix in water for easier take?
    Is there any expected side effects from this very high dose taken orally? My dad is diabetic as a well but his heart and kidneys seems to be functioning well.

    I also give him Terry Naturally CuraProurcuma longa (Turmeric (BCM-95® / Curcugreen™)) 25:1 rhizome
    extract, dried equivalent 16,250 mg, providing 559 mg curcuminoids- 650 mg
    8 capsules a day which count to about 4.5 g of curcuminoids.

    Would the curcumin conflict with the Quercitin program? Do I need to stop the curcumin when giving him the Quercitin high dose?
    I also give him a mix of mushroom extracts (Reishi, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps) do I need to stop that?

    Thank you!

    1. Hi Bavalwa,

      I am sorry to hear about the condition of your dad. You may want to browse through this website and you may come across other relevant supplements or re-purposed drugs – I would not spend much time with reading the comments as it takes a lot of the valuable time that is better used searching for treatment solutions.
      Regarding the dose of Quercetin, now looking back at it I think it’s a little on the high side 8-9g although I heard of some using this dose. I think max 6g may be a better target. However, I would never jump to a high dose with any supplement or drug but always move in steps towards the target dose. I would better use the capsules that contain 500mg instead of the 50mg, since the 50mg capsule may contain too much of other ingredients. I used Curcumin and Quercetin supplements in parallel without stopping any of them. I would take them with Omega 3 oil. However, next to Curc and Quercetin I would search for additional treatment options. There are many valuable treatment options discussed on this website that you may want to consider and discuss with your doctor. You could also consider COC protocol https://www.cancertreatmentsresearch.com/drug-cocktail-that-could-double-the-average-survival-time/ If you have questions please let me know.

      Kind regards,
      Daniel

  22. Hi Bavalva,

    It’s ok to use quercetin along with curcumin, in fact, NF has a product in which they combine both.
    You might want to check out Thorne Research, Quercetin Phytosome (250mg per caps. of highly absorbable quercetin). As Daniels suggested I’d start with a regular dose, work up to 2500mg and beyond.
    Although Quercetin has shown much promise in many “in vitro” studies, there’s a reason for concern as to what it actually does en vivo.
    One study in a rat model found Quercetin actually promoted tumor growth:
    https://www.academia.edu/12644595/Quercetin_promotes_glioma_growth_in_a_rat_model

    1. @johan: I found another one, quoting “Unexpectedly, D+Q (Dasatinib + Quercetin) alone appeared to have acute pro-tumorigenic effects in control mice.
      Senolytic Cocktail Dasatinib+Quercetin (D+Q) Does Not Enhance the Efficacy of Senescence-Inducing Chemotherapy in Liver Cancer. PMID: 30425964

  23. Thanks so much Danie and John for the quick reply and apologies for the long comment.

    Yes, there are a lot of great articles on the website and thanks again for all the effort in helping people. I am just wondering is there a specific regime/ program of supplements to help with Multiple Myeloma specifically? I am quite lost in all the supplements and treatment options offered and not sure which ones can help my dad. If there is a specific article or program of treatment that can help please point me to it.
    Again thank you sincerely for all your efforts, time and the work you’ve done and keep doing.

    1. bavalwa,
      I understand the urgency, here’s a list of supplements that could have anticancer effects(not MM specific). If taking medications double check if the supplement(s) can be combined with those drugs, especially with chemotherapy, diabetes medications, anticoagulant and antiplatelet medications (including aspirin), benzodiazepines, etc. To combine various supplements add one at a time, start with the lowest possible dose and gradually increase if no side effect is observed. → means possible synergy

      Artemisinin: 200 – 500 mg once or twice a day on an empty stomach or 2 hours after last meal, and with cod liver oil for better absorption. Intermittent dosing (4-5 days on/2-3 days off) 6 up to 24 months. Alternative: Artesunate
      →Honokiol: 1-3 gr/day in 2 or 3 divided doses. Honokiol+Magnolol>95% Cost: ≈ $1,2/day for 2gr/day
      Curcumin: 4-8gr/day, take with meals. 4-week cycles (4 weeks On/1 or 2 weeks Off). Up to 24 months.
      →Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG): 800mg/day. 400mg twice daily. For best absorption take with filtered water(not mineral water) and with Omega 3 fish oil supplement(take the omega 3 first, then the EGCg), as this can also increase bioavailability and may enhance its efficacy.
      →Berberine: 500 – 1500 mg/day 4 days per week during 6-8 week cycles, take with meals.
      →Triphala
      →Ursolic acid: 0,5- 1gr/day divided in 2 doses (breakfast,dinner). Take with some coconut oil for better absorption. 4 week cycles (4 weeks On/1 or 2 weeks Off).
      Citric Acid: 0.05 to 0.1g/kg/day with water and with meals (in 2 or 3 divided doses).
      IP6: 500mg – 18 g/day
      Turkey Tail: Trametes or Coriolus Versicolor, 4 g twice daily.
      Panax Ginseng: 800-2000mg/day (in divided doses, morning, afternoon).
      C-phycocyanin: 0.8-1.6 gr/day in 2 or 3 divided doses or 4-8 g Spirulina/day (Spirulina is about 20% C-phycocyanin by weight.)
      Jiaogulan: 5-20mg/kg/day (1 kg =2.20462 lb) in 4 week cycles (4 weeks On/1 or 2 weeks Off). Take between meals. Rich source of dammarane-type saponins
      D-limonene: 0.5-3gr/day, in divided doses.
      Melatonin: 3-15mg/day at night.
      Black cumin seed oil: 3-4 x 500mg caps./day, or if you can stand the taste, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of the oil (with or before breakfast). You can mix the oil in some orange juice.
      Emodin (rhubarb extract)
      Salvia militiorrhiza: contains Tanshinone IIA. 1 tablet twice daily with a meal.
      Luteolin: 100-200mg/day, in divided doses with meals. Taking Luteolin with olive leaf extract may increase absorption.
      Pyrroloquinoline: 20-40mg/day, after meals. Consider taking with coQ10.
      Holy basil: contains Oleanolic Acid. 2-3 caps/day
      Piperlongumine
      Iodine
      Fucoidan: 3-6gr/day, in 3 or 4 divided doses.
      Ashwagandha: contains Withaferin A. Root and leaf extract. 1200mg-6000mg/day in 2 divided doses (afternoon and evening).
      Modified Citrus Pectin
      Bovine Tracheal Cartilage

      Diet can affect the rate of cancer growth. High levels of the enzyme PI3K are correlated with malignant transformation of cells, and PI3K is easily activated by insulin. Thus, controlling and reducing insulin is of utmost importance IMO.

      Inhibition of glycolysis: “Deprivation of cellular energy supply may be an effective way to overcome multidrug resistance.” M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

      IMO a cancer patient should eat foods, herbs, and spices that are proven to kill cancer cells.

      #1: Cholesterol-Lowering Foods: some cancer cells are vulnerable to cholesterol → eat foods rich in soluble fiber: Beans, Oats, Berries. Hawthorne berries. Flax seeds. Green tea.
      #2: Sugar restriction: Eliminate all processed and artificial sugars (likely more effective in combination with #3 and #4). Fruits are allowed but choose fruits with strong anticancer properties.
      #3: ↳ Glycolysis inhibition: Turmeric, Graviola, Cardamom Spice, Ginger, Quercetin, Resveratrol, Apigenin, Citric acid
      #4 ↳ Reduce lactate levels: magnesium → magnesium supplements (best taken with food in the evening), High Magnesium Foods, nettles(extract, tea), lemon juice (citric acid), Green tea (extract), Saffron, KD
      #5: The ketogenic diet(KD): eating a low-carb diet will cause the body to start burning fat(ketones) instead of sugar(glucose).
      #6: Time Restricted Eating
      #7: Increase NK cell activity: reduced lactate levels improve NK cell activity (see #4| *see study below), enzymatically modified rice bran, blueberries, Brolico(not a typo :), melatonin(as a supplement, also in foods like pistachios, lentils) Panax ginseng, cardamom & black pepper (work synergistically) Turkey Tail, Active Hexose Correlated Compound, zinc(1 hour before breakfast or before lunch), Modified citrus pectin.
      #8: Eating enzyme-rich foods and adding an oral enzyme preparation (in between meals!) to your diet plan might be very helpful at eliminating cancer cells.

      The KD could be done intermittently, for example, a few days once a month.

      *https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ijc.30646

      1. Here’s a new and interesting study on MM:
        “Study finds a correlation between sleep apnea, multiple myeloma”
        https://dailyiowan.com/2019/05/08/study-finds-correlation-between-sleep-apnea-and-multiple-myeloma/

        “Mice were also injected with myeloma cells to see how the cancer cells affected the mice with different oxygen levels. The results of the study found that mice exposed to intermittent hypoxia developed cancer and died at a much higher rate than regular mice.”

        Many people don’t know they suffer from sleep apnea so that’s definitely something you could look into.

        Donc (https://www.cancertreatmentsresearch.com/a-visitor-story-healing-from-stage-4-prostate-cancer-with-fasting-and-juicing/) mentioned the Wim Hof breathing exercises and how it has helped him. You might want to check it out, it’s very easy to do.

  24. @bavalwa: the 9g Quercetin per day dose is very high, better start much lower, like 1g per day.
    In refractory / relapsed MM, it would be wise to find out to which chemo the disease is still susceptible, and then combine with “natural therapies”. However, a synergy is not guaranteed, for example Quercetin antagonizes Bortezomib.
    I would suggest to try Pterostilbene (my experience for tolerability, up to 1.5g per day), it is active against MM, check this article:
    Pterostilbene inhibits nutrient metabolism and induces apoptosis through AMPK activation in multiple myeloma cells. PMID: 30226553
    Combining Pterostilbene with an autophagy inhibitor like Clarithromycin may increase apoptosis, but no article confirms this yet.
    However, Clarithromycin does increase the efficacy of anti-MM regimens, check these two articles:
    Phase 2 study of clarithromycin, pomalidomide, and dexamethasone in relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. PMID: 30792190
    A novel combination of bortezomib, lenalidomide, and clarithromycin produced stringent complete response in refractory multiple myeloma complicated with diabetes mellitus – clinical significance and possible mechanisms: a case report. PMID: 29454372

  25. @Ovidiu @Johan @Daniel, Thanks so much for your replies.

    The doctor will start Revlimid (Lenalidomide) tomorrow. We are hoping that he will tolerate it as his body is very weak.

    The garlic study is quite interesting. Preparing the Garlic Extract (GE) at home seems quite complicated, especially the freezing at −20 °C.
    Do you know if there is a GE product on the market that can deliver the same active ingredient that helps fight the myeloma?

    My father also is having trouble sleeping. It seems to be a known side effect of the myeloma. Is there a natural product that can help him sleep? Melatonin was tried and wasn’t really effective. I am giving him lithium orotate to help with negative feelings and to uplift his feelings, it helps with sleeping too but only for a few hours.

    I am also giving him Magnesium and Calcium orotate that is helping with keeping his bone structure and helping in preventing Calcium leaching into his blood. But, the pain is still there and as you probably know is really bad and intolerable. Is there a natural product that can help with the pain and the bones?

    Thank you again for all the help.

    1. Hi bavalwa,
      I think Allimed is the supplement you need, it’s a bit expensive but I don’t know of any other allicin supplement that can provide a therapeutic dose.
      Has your father tried st john’s wort tea and/or valerian? It’s usually not effective overnight but I know quite a few people who use it and feel they sleep better b/c of drinking the tea.
      Regards

  26. There is another plant derived drug called dihydroquercetin (taxifolin).
    it might have better bioavailability than most of others.
    Only few articles are posted on cancer treatment by taxifolin.
    Should be available on market.

  27. I’m confused about quercetin, it seems to be both a cancer fighter and a tumorigenic. Is quercetin at all recommendable for ER+ breast cancers? Under what circumstances is it tumorigenic? Would really appreciate suggestions.

      1. Hi ljb,

        Indeed, Quercetin is one that is debated in hormonal breast cancer. Nevertheless, here is one lady who is using Quercetin together with many other supplements and she is successful https://healingbreastcancer.info
        I also just checked a number of RGCC tests from various breast cancer patients and in these tests Quercetin was active against cancer cells from all patients.

        However, since there is a debate I would probably skip this one in breast cancer – I think we have enough powerful supplements that are relevant to breast cancer. One of those that I prefer against breast cancer is Baicalein.

        Beyond this discussion, most of the scientific literature and chemo-sensitivity tests indicate that Quercetin is outstanding in the fight against cancer. Science will always point all directions and people will feel mislead by that. In order to identify the correct direction, we need to look at where most of the major studies are pointing to.

        Kind regards,
        Daniel

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