Tumors
Cepharanthine contains cytotoxic and anti-angiogenic properties, which means that it can both kill tumor cells and starve tumors by preventing blood from reaching it.
Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma is a malignant tumor of the bone marrow that is very difficult to treat. In one case study, a patient whose tumor was not responding to chemotherapy was coincidentally given cepharanthine to treat thrombocytopenia (a platelet deficiency which increases the risk of life-threatening bleeding). The patient was administered cepharanthine along with dexamethasone (a corticosteroid drug). The treatment resolved the platelet counts and surprisingly resulted in a marked reduction in the patient’s tumor load. Investigations revealed that Cepharanthine induces apoptosis and inhibits the growth of myeloma cells. The anti-tumor effect of Cepharanthine was observed in all tested myeloma cell lines, indicating Cepharanthine’s excellent potential in the future treatment of multiple myeloma.
Radiation-induced leukopenia
Many clinical studies involving more than 350 patients have been conducted to examine the benefits of CEP for the recovery of leukopenia (reduction of white blood cells) for patients undergoing radiation therapy for numerous types of cancer which can shorten the period of risk for infection. This enables patients to undergo more aggressive radiation regimens with shorter intervals between treatment.
Relief of cancer treatment side effects
Cepharanthine has been used to alleviate taste disorders and oral discomfort in patients receiving chemotherapy, which is essential to help cancer patients eat normally and prevent cachexia (weight loss).
Cepharanthine is particularly successful in reducing harmful side effects of chemotherapy for head and neck cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, ovarian cancer, and gynecological malignant tumors.
Chemotherapy enhancement
Research has proven that Cepharanthine has the ability to increase chemotherapy success rates, prevent tumor growth, induce apoptosis in cancer cells, and restore the effect of cancer-fighting medications for treatment-resistant tumors.
Cepharanthine has the power to reverse multi-drug resistance (MDR) and enhance the impact of chemotherapy by interfering with the plasma membrane of tumor cells, thereby allowing anti-cancer drugs to penetrate the tumors much more easily.
Promising research shows that when Cepharanthine was added to chemotherapy treatment, the effect was ten to several hundred times more powerful than chemotherapy alone! This raises the hope that lower and less damaging chemotherapy doses will be possible once cepharanthine use is widely adopted.