Kaempferol: Possible Health Benefits For Cancer Patients

Cancer manifests itself in many ways, in any part of the human body, and all cancer forms are marked by the same thing – an unfettered proliferation of abnormal cells.  Cancer is also one of the leading causes of mortality in the United States, coming in as the second leading cause of death for adult Americans.  It accounted for 21.3% of deaths in the US in 2017, second only to heart disease (https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/282929.php#cancer).

Instances of cancer across the US can come from many causes, though not all are well understood.  Surgery, radiation treatments, and chemotherapy have shown to be effective in cancer treatments, but not without a tremendous costs to an already ailing body, and unfortunately, cancer cells adapt to the treatments that modern science often offers, and being rid of a cancer 100% is a long, arduous and often recurring journey that patients and survivors must face.  Chemotherapy, especially, is a treatment that is knows to cause many horrible side effects, such as nausea and vomiting, weight loss, hair loss, exhaustion and a plethora of other side effects.  For some, the option of chemotherapy may be too harsh, and the treatment may be declined because of the effects.

Natural treatments for cancer are always sought out, and as the public becomes more aware of the side effects of many cancer therapies; natural treatments may become a better and better option or supplement to standard treatment.

There are many herbal treatments that may assist a patient in recovery, such as Thunder God Vine, Myricetin, Gossypentin, Quercitin and Kaempferol and many more. Kaempferol is a polyphenol antioxidant found in fruits and vegetables and has been shown to increase glutathione levels by up to 50%, which helps neutralize free radicals in the boy and reduce oxidative stress. 

Many studies have described the beneficial effects of dietary kaempferol in reducing the risk of chronic diseases, especially cancer. Epidemiological studies have shown an inverse relationship between kaempferol intake and cancer. Kaempferol may help by augmenting the body’s antioxidant defense against free radicals, which promote the development of cancer. At the molecular level, kaempferol has been reported to modulate several key elements in cellular signal transduction pathways linked to apoptosis, angiogenesis, inflammation, and metastasis. Significantly, kaempferol inhibits cancer cell growth and angiognesis and induces cancer cell apoptosis, but on the other hand, kaempferol appears to preserve normal cell viability, in some cases exerting a protective effect (Chen et al., “A review of the dietary flavonoid, kaempferol on human health and cancer chemoprevention.” )

Another advocate of Kaempferol use is Dr. Ken Crawford, author of “Nu Oncology” notes on page 117 that kaempferol also helps to protect the fragile auditory cells in the ears, which can be adversely affected in chemotherapy, especially in children.  He writes, “The more kaempferol you take, the better your hearing will be at the end of chemotherapy”. 

Another benefit of kaempferol according to doctor Crawford is that Kaempferol down-regulates or reduces the expression of c-Myc, which has an effect on longevity and overall health – the less c-Myc you have in your system, the longer you will live and the better your quality of life and health will be – your likelihood of osteoporosis is reduced, reduced cardiac aging and a well-functioning immune system (p 118).

In conclusion, Kaempferol may be a flavonoid you want to take care to add to your diet if you are battling cancer, in chemotherapy, or just general wish you have a healthier, longer life span than you may otherwise have.

References

Chen, Allen Y, and Yi Charlie Chen. “A review of the dietary flavonoid, kaempferol on human health and cancer chemoprevention.” Food chemistry vol. 138,4 (2013): 2099-107. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2012.11.139

Download the PDF: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3601579/pdf/nihms431770.pdf

Crawford, Ken et. al., “Nu-Oncology Cancer Prevention and Anti-Aging, Vol 1. Nu-Oncology press, Inc. published 2017.