TheoreganoA common ingredient in pizzas and many Italian sauces, it has been studied for decades for its various beneficial health effects. Now, a new work by researchers from Long Island University (USA) has gone a step further by showing thata component of this spice could be used to treat prostate cancer, one of the male tumors that cause the most deaths each year.
Prostate cancer begins in the prostate gland, and experts estimate that it will be the cause of death for 1 in 36 men living in the world today. Currently it is treated with radiotherapy, hormonal therapy, chemotherapy and surgery, which in some cases are invasive therapies, with possible complications, and in others cause undesirable side effects.
Supriya Bavadekar, co-author of the study, seem to have found an alternative in thecarvacrol, a component of oregano. Their work reveals that this moleculeinduces apoptosis, that is, programmed cell death or “cell suicide” in tumor cellsprostate. “We knew that oregano has anti-inflammatory properties and that it acts as an antibiotic, but its effect on cancer cells places the spice in the category of” superspecies, “” explains the researcher. “Some scientists had shown that eating pizza reduced the risk of cancer, but it used to be attributed to tomato sauce, which contain lycopene,” Bavadekar pointed out in the presentation of the study during the congressExperimental Biology 2012. Now it seems clear that oregano also contributes to the healthful effects of the most popular dish in Italian cuisine.
