A new animal study by researchers at the famed MD Anderson Cancer Center shows that combining gamma tocotrienol with chemotherapy in the treatment of pancreatic cancer reduced tumor growth and boosted the killing properties of the drug. This is an important finding since pancreatic cancer is a type of cancer that is often resistant to treatment.

The natural defense system of every cell in your body uses an advanced intelligence based on the actions of a gene-regulating system centered around NF-kappaB. NF-kappaB decides how your cells are going to deal with stress. When NF-kappaB is constantly overworked, like a 911 switchboard getting too many calls every day, then chronic inflammation results because NF-kappaB is more or less yelling and screaming for results and nothing is happening. In this state of dysfunction the NF-kappaB system can be hijacked, which is the common theme of all cancers. Once hijacked, the normal cell defense is now put to work defending the survival of a cancerous cell. Thus, as chemo drugs are pumped into a cell NF-kappaB now coordinates pumping the toxic drugs out of the cells so that the cancer can survive.

Drugs that selectively attack NF-kappaB would be so toxic to human health that they would not work. Enter nutrition. Many nutrients have an ability to tell the difference between a cancer cell and a healthy cell – and directly modulate NF-kappa B accordingly. In a healthy cell the nutrient will help to calm down NF-kappaB, reducing the inflammation and helping the cell to survive. In a cancer cell the very same nutrient will induce death signals causing the cancer cell to die. No drugs can do this – only Mother Nature. A shining example of this nutrient intelligence is gamma tocotrienol, which has been reported to help a variety of cancers both in terms of anti-cancer properties as well as enhancing the ability of chemo drugs to work better.

This new study, which is an animal study, indicates support for the use of gamma tocotrienol in the war on pancreatic cancer. True enough, human studies will need to be done before this strategy enters mainstream medicine or any human health claim can be made. On the other hand, there is no adverse side effect to this nutrient. Individuals should not misinterpret such research and think that gamma tocotrienol is a treatment for any cancer, especially in place of chemo. However, having a realistic understanding of how a nutrient may be able to help, combined with the lack of adverse side effects, makes gamma tocotrienol a logical choice as part of a nutrient program to bolster health in times of need.