A recent study claims that frankincense, one of the gifts used at the Nativity scene, can help cure ovarian tumors.
Scientists have discovered that a chemical in frankincense killed cells from hard-to-treat tumors. Ovarian cancer is symptomless in the earliest stages and usually not diagnosed until it's too late, making it the deadliest gynecological cancer. In the UK alone, 7,000 new cases of ovarian cancer are reported each year and 4,300 of these patients will die because of the disease. Frankincense is well-known for its anti-inflammatory properties and has long been used as a folk medicine, along with resin and other types of Boswellia.
As of late, it is being studied as a treatment for several types of cancers. Researchers from the Leicester University said: "Frankincense is taken by many people with no known side effects. This finding has enormous potential to be taken to clinical trial in the future and developed into an additional treatment for ovarian cancer." Kamla Al-Salmani, PhD student from the University's Department of Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine and lead researcher said: "After a year of studying acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid (AKBA) compound with ovarian cancer cell lines in vitro, we have been able to show it is effective at killing the cancer cells."
"What has been most surprising is that the cells we have tested which are resistant to chemotherapy have shown to be more sensitive to this compound, suggesting frankincense may indeed be able to help overcome drug resistance, and lead to an improved survival rate for patients with late-stage ovarian cancer," said Dr. Mark Evans, Kamla's PhD Supervisor and Lecturer in the University's Department of Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine.
