Among his experiences in the use of Aloe for the treatment of various cancers, Father Romano Zago, in the book “Cancer can be cured“, also tells of some testimonies of people who have improved, or even recovered from breast cancer taking this preparation based on Aloe Arborescens and honey.
Today a scientific study, unfortunately for now only in vitro, seems to confirm the anti-tumor action of Aloe.
In the present study the cytotoxic potential of raw Aloe Vera extract (ACE) alone and in combination with cisplatin (a chemotherapeutic agent) in breast and cervical cancer cellswas studied by cell viability assay, morphological examination nuclear and cell cycle analysis.
The effects were correlated with the modulation of the expression of genes involved in cell cycle regulation, apoptosis and drug metabolism by RT-PCR.
Exposure of tumor cells to Aloe extract resulted in a significant loss of cell viability in a dose- and time-dependent manner, which was found to be mediated by the apoptotic pathway as evidenced by changes in nuclear morphology and cell distribution in different stages of the cell cycle.
Interestingly, the Aleo Vera extract had no significant cytotoxicity towards normal cells, thus placing it in the category of safe chemopreventive agents.
Furthermore, the effects were related to downregulation of cyclin D1, CYP 1A1, CYP 1A2 and to increased expression of bax and p21 in MCF-7 and HeLa cells.
Additionally, the low-dose combination of Aloe extract and cisplatin showed a combination index of less than 1, indicating synergistic growth inhibition compared to individually applied agents.
Study Results
In short, these results indicate that Aloe can be an effective antineoplastic agent to inhibit the growth of cancer cells and increase the therapeutic efficacy of conventional drugs such as cispolatin.
Thus promoting the development of therapeutic agents of plant origin seems justified for new cancer treatment strategies.
