Michael Prescott's Blog

Of mice and men

Reuters reports on a promising innovation in cancer therapy, which has yielded 100% survival rates among cancer-stricken mice. 

The therapy, published in the latest Nature Biotechnology journal, sees mini-cells called EDVs (EnGenelC Delivery Vehicle) attach and enter the cancer cell.

The first wave of mini-cells release ribonucleic acid molecules, called siRNA, which switch off the production of proteins that make the cancer cell resistant to chemotherapy.

A second wave of EDV cells is then accepted by the cancer cell and releases chemotherapy drugs, killing the cancer cell.

"The beauty is that our EDVs operate like 'Trojan Horses.' They arrive at the gates of the affected cells and are always allowed in," said [Dr. Jennifer] MacDiarmid.

"We are playing the rogue cells at their own game. They switch-on the gene to produce the protein to resist drugs, and we are switching-off the gene which, in turn, enables the drugs to enter." ...

The Nature report said the mini-cells were "well tolerated with no adverse side effects or deaths in any of the actively treated animals, despite repeated dosing."

Human trials will start next week in Australia. Could this be the beginnng of the end for cancer?  

Sneezes in the breezes

Allergy season is nearly upon us, and in some parts of the country it's already here. Many people suffer from hay fever and similar allergies, but a surprising number of them seem to be unaware of an over-the-counter allergy medicine that really works. It's called Nasalcrom (cromolyn sodium).

Nasalcrom comes in a spray bottle. You squirt it into your nostrils. It inhibits the mast cells (mastocytes) in the sinuses from reacting to pollen and other irritants. If the mast cells don't react, allergy symptoms won't develop.

Most other allergy treatments address the symptoms of allergies - runny nose, sneezing, etc. Nasalcrom addresses the source of the problem.

It's not habit-forming and has no side effects. Generic versions are also available. If your local drugstores don't carry it, Nasalcrom can be ordered online.

Why don't more people use Nasalcrom? Part of the reason may be that it takes a while to become effective. You have to use it for a week or two and let it build up over time. Some people seem to lack the patience; they try it for a couple of days, get no relief, and give up.

Also, Nasalcrom is most effective when you start taking it a week or two before allergy season begins. But many people seem to wait until their allergies are already acting up. The product will still work, even if started late, but it may take longer to have an effect.

Maybe there are some allergy sufferers who won't respond to Nasalcrom, but many (like me) will benefit greatly from it. If you have seasonal allergies and haven't used Nasalcrom, give it a try. Your nose may thank you.

Comments are down

Comments don't seem to be working at the moment. Another TypePad glitch.

Here's a comment I would have posted on the last thread:

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Why didn't you try energy work?

Because I don't know anything about it.

It's been 49 hours, and my cough has not returned. Today I had a mild upset stomach so I cut back on the megadoses.

I plan to take at least 1000 mg of C daily as a nutrient. Since the Ester-C 1000-mg tablets really are big enough to choke a horse, I'm going to experiment with chewable tablets from another manufacture. These combine ascorbate and ascorbic acid. I don't know if they'll be as effective as ascorbate alone.

For what it's worth

What follows is purely anecdotal evidence. In fact, it's pretty much the definition of anecdotal evidence. If you look up "anecdotal evidence" in the dictionary, you will find a link to this post.

Still, it's interesting and, as newspapers used to say in the days when they printed stories they couldn't verify, "important if true."

Since Tuesday I've had a sinus infection. On Thursday, having realized it wasn't just an allergy or a cold, I went to a doctor and got a prescription for antibiotics, which I am faithfully taking. The antibiotics cleared up most of the symptoms within a couple of days. But one symptom persisted and in fact got worse - a continuous heavy cough.

I had a sinus infection last year, and the same thing happened. The cough persisted long after the other symptoms, and even after I had completed my course of antibiotics. In that case I had to go back to the doctor for a second, stronger course.

This time the cough was especially bad. I could hardly sleep at all. On Saturday night I was awake until the wee hours of the morning (Sunday morning). I finally got about two hours of sleep.

During my period of insomnia I went online and searched for "cough" + "remedy." Various herbal teas and other concoctions were offered. I'd tried some of these last time with no effect.

One idea I hadn't tried involved Vitamin C. The suggestion was to take a very large dose of C in ascorbate form. Ascorbate is said to be more efficiently absorbed by the body than the more common ascorbic acid.

I was skeptical. Isn't megavitamin therapy a crock?

On Sunday morning I dragged myself to the local drugstore and bought some food and other essentials, but I did not buy any Vitamin C. I thought it would be a waste of money.

But when the cough persisted into the afternoon, I got desperate. Feeling foolish, I returned to the drugstore and hunted among the Vitamin C products until I found one that contained C in ascorbate form. The brand is Ester-C. I bought the 1000-mg variety. (The RDA for Vitamin C is only 60 mg.)

Still coughing when I got home, I immediately took three of the Ester-C pills. That's 3000 mg of C. This was at 3:30. Within five minutes my cough stopped. (I kept a journal to ensure accuracy of recollection.)

An hour later, at 4:30, I started to cough again. I took an additional 2000 mg of C. This brought the total dosage of C to 5000 mg. The cough stopped.

Moreover, I felt a rush of energy. I decided to go for a "short walk." The short walk turned out to last almost two hours, during which time I hiked up and down the twisting, hilly streets in my neighborhood. I had not had this much energy since coming down with sinusitis. (I'm not even sure I had this much energy when I was healthy.)

At 6:30, back from my walk, I was starting to cough again. I took 2000 mg of C. The cough stopped and remained quiet for nearly four hours.

At 10:15 it started to make a comeback. I took 2000 mg of C, and another 1000 mg at 10:30 because I wasn't sure the first dose was enough. After that, the cough was quiet.

But now the acid test was approaching: bedtime. This is when the cough was always at its worst. Would I start coughing as soon as I lay down?

Rather nervously I reclined on the couch at 11 PM. After a short time - still cough-free - I fell asleep. I woke up at 12:30 PM today, having slept for more than thirteen hours. And I still wasn't coughing.

Could this be a coincidence? I think it's unlikely. The cough disappeared almost immediately after I took the first megadose, and each time it started to return, another megadose suppressed it.

How about the placebo effect? I can't rule this out. Although consciously I was skeptical, subconsciously I may have expected the treatment to work. On the other hand, I had tried various other remedies for the cough, and none of them had any effect. Why would the outcome be different in this case?

I think the most likely explanation is that the Vitamin C really did knock out the cough. I can't prove it, but I'm passing along the information for what it may be worth.

Incidentally, I should point out that the 1000-mg Ester-C pills are very large, and some people may have trouble swallowing them. Ester-C is available in 500-mg form as well, and those pills are smaller and easier to swallow.