Healthy Food Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) That inhibits the Initiation and Progression of Esophageal Cancer in Vitro

By Kyle J. Norton

Esophageal cancer is a chronic and medical condition arisen from the esophagus due to the alternation of cell DNA.

Most cases of esophageal cancer start in the cell on the surface of the inner lining of the esophagus between the throat and the stomach. At the early stage, due to the very small size of the tumor, most patients are asymptomatic.

As the tumor continues to grow, patients may experience symptoms of difficulty swallowing, persistent chest pain and pressure, pain burning sensation, coughing or hoarseness and heartburn. 

If you persistently experience chronic acid reflux, accompanied by some of the aforementioned symptoms, you should check with your doctor immediately to rule out of the possibility of esophageal cancer.

Some patients may also vomit blood if the tumor has pressed onto the nearby blood vessels.

At the advanced stage, the primary cancer cell can also travel a distance away to infect other healthy tissues and organs, leading to the secondary metastasis.

According to the statistics, in the US, aproximately17,650 adults (13,750 men and 3,900 women) in the United States will be diagnosed with esophageal cancer this year, accounting for 1% of cancers diagnosed.

Although there are many risk factors associated with the onset of the disease, some researchers suggested patients with chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are found to have a strong implication on the disease onset. 

Dr. Shaheen N, the lead scientist at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hil, wrote, "Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a risk factor for adenocarcinoma of the esophagus, rare cancer whose incidence is increasing".

However, "Strong evidence supports the association of GERD and adenocarcinoma of the esophagus; however, the risk of cancer in any given individual with GERD is low".

The cucumber plant is a species of Cucumis Sativus, belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae and native to Western Asia. It is a creeping vine with roots in the ground and grows up with the support of frames.

With an aim to discover a potential ingredient for the treatment of esophageal cancer, researchers investigated the possible cytotoxic effect of freeze-dried aqueous extract of E. elaterium fruit on KYSE30 (human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma).

The study included the free dried aqueous extract of the fruits of E. elaterium incubated for 24, 48, and 72 h. on KYSE30 cancer cell lines.

The extracts showed a significant effect in the inhibition of KYSE30 cell line at IC(50) values at concentrations of 500, 150, and 125 μg/ml after 24, 48, and 72 h, respectively.

According to the EB/AO staining, the extract showed an increase in apoptotic cells of the KYSE30 cell line. 

Furthermore, the free dried aqueous extract of the fruits of E. elaterium exerted a significant increase in cell density at G2/M phase before inducing cell cycle arrest, according to the cell cycle analysis.

Based on the findings, researchers suggested that the freeze-dried aqueous extract of E. elaterium fruit has a cytotoxic effect on esophageal cancer cell lines via the induction of apoptosis.

Dr. Bohlooli S, the lead scientist wrote, " It seems that several compounds are possibly responsible for the cytotoxic effect of the extract".

In other words, several compounds in the extract worked synergistically to exhibit the cytotoxicity against the tested cancer cell line.

Taken altogether, cucumber may be considered supplements for the prevention and treatment of esophageal cancer, pending to the confirmation of the larger sample size and multicenter human study.

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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

Sources
(1) Cytotoxic effect of freeze-dried extract of Ecballium elaterium fruit on gastricadenocarcinoma (AGS) and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (KYSE30) cell lines by Bohlooli S1, Jafari N, Jahed S. (PubMed)
(2) Gastroesophageal reflux, barrett esophagus, and esophageal cancer: scientific review by Shaheen N1, Ransohoff DF. (PubMed)