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Prostate Cancer Risk & Diagnosis

If faced with this real life scenario what would you do? A 60 year old has just found out that his PSA is slightly elevated, the rectal exam is normal, the consulted urologist advises "watchful waiting" and the patient wants a proactive nutritional therapy to help keep his prostate as healthy as possible and ideally lower the PSA level. Clearly starting with a healthier diet that is rich in O-3 fish oils and reducing high glycemic carbohydrates is a start. But 1 out of 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime and all have "bad" diets. So what else can we offer?

Recent understanding points to the involvement of the pro-inflammatory 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) mediated cascade in the development of nearly 35(!) chronic illnesses. These include asthma, allergies, arthritis, vascular, neurological and digestive diseases. 1-3  Contrary to the  well known, also pro - inflammatory COX mediated pathway, the 5-LO cascade is largely ignored from a therapeutic point of view since the large pharmaceutical companies have not been able to create any synthetic drugs with reliably low side effects.  Thus the “misery” created by the leukotrienes, the 5-LO by-products, is not eliminated.3 Since the natural 5-LO inhibitors presented below are ignored, the patient in effect is only "half  treated".

The bottom line is that we can offer the patient more than "watchful waiting".

5-Lipoxygenase and Prostate Cancer

New research convincingly shows that the 5-LO stimulates the growth and proliferation of prostate cancer cells through growth promoting peptides. 4 In a study of human biopsy samples the 5-LO mRNA was six times higher in the abnormal as opposed to the normal tissues. 5 The authors’ conclusion was that inhibition of the 5-LO would be a useful tool in the prevention and treatment of prostate cancer. 5-LO actively prevents apoptosis of the prostate cancer cells; increases growth factor and transcription factor activation; stimulates oncogene induction; stimulates tumor cell adhesion; etc. 6 A multitude of studies specifically demonstrate and address the central issue that inhibition of the 5-LO pathway leads to the death of prostate cancer cells. 7-10

AKBA the most potent 5-LO Inhibitor
 
The premier 5-LO inhibitor is the natural, herbal ingredient AKBA, acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid, the most active component of the frankincense, Boswellia serrata.  Its most fundamental action is to be anti-inflammatory. 11 Studies have proven its efficacy in arthritis, colitis, allergies and environmental sensitivities, as well as for pain syndromes. 12, 13

The success of boswellia extracts is all the more surprising since only poorly standardized products have been available on the general market. The component AKBA is recognized as the active anti-inflammatory principle in the boswellia and yet by far most of the formulas have only 1-3% AKBA concentration.

Fortunately the AKBA Plus™ supplement is now available with a boswellia concentration of over 90% AKBA! The enhanced efficacy of this new formula is considerable.

In over 1 million dosages dispensed, clinical successes could be seen where previously therapeutic failure had been noted.  Improvement in previously therapy resistant back pain, prolonged “holding” of chiropractic adjustments and faster analgesia post injury has been routinely noted. 

AKBA and Prostate Cancer

Boswellic acids have been shown to inhibit the proliferation and induce the apoptosis of prostate cancer cells through various mechanisms such as: the DR-5 pathway; inhibition of IkB kinase; or interference with Sp1 binding activity. 14-17

Dosage and Administration:

AKBA Plus™ makes possible for the first time that effective plasma levels can easily be reached. 1 to 3 caps daily are sufficient in most patients. (To achieve the plasma levels of 3 AKBA Plus™ capsules approx. 15-20 caps of common preparations would be needed). The absorption of AKBA Plus™ is further enhanced in this professional formula through the addition of Fenugreek and Bioperine®. Giving the supplement with a meal will further improve absorption.

Safety and toxicology;

AKBA Plus™ has practically no side effects. Isolated cases of headache have been noted with daily dosages of more than several capsules. There have not been any reports of the intestinal distress seen with other boswellia preparations. Toxicological studies attest to the safety of this formula. AKBA Plus™ is manufactured in a GMP approved facility. The supplement is third party tested and certified.

Other Nutritional Advances:

Vitamin K2 Plus™: an increased intake of vitamin K2 may reduce the risk of prostate cancer by 35%. 18

Berberine Plus ™: Berberine inhibits cell proliferation and induces cell death in both androgen sensitive and androgen insensitive prostate cancer cells. 19, 20
 
Conclusion

AKBA Plus ™ is the Gold Standard natural 5-LO inhibitor that can be recommended as a first line nutritional therapy for lowering prostate cancer risk. Together with Berberine Plus™ and Vitamin K2 Plus™ it is positioned to become part of the Standard of Care in Nutritional therapy for prostate health.

References

1. Radmark O, Werz O, Steinhilber D, Samuelsson B. 5-lipoxygenase: Regulation of expression and enzyme activity. Trends in Biochemical Sciences. 2007 [cited 16 May 2008];32(7):332-41. 2. Rubin P, Mollison KW. Pharmacotherapy of diseases mediated by 5-lipoxygenase pathway eicosanoids. Prostaglandins and Other Lipid Mediators. 2007 [cited 16 May 2008];83(3 SPEC. ISS.):188-97. 3. Whitehouse MW, Rainsford KD. Lipoxygenase inhibition: The neglected frontier for regulating chronic inflammation and pain. Inflammopharmacology. 2006 [cited 16 May 2008];14(3-4):99-102. 4. Hassan S, Carraway RE. Involvement of arachidonic acid metabolism and EGF receptor in neurotensin-induced prostate cancer PC3 cell growth. Regulatory Peptides. 2006 [cited 16 May 2008];133(1-3):105-14. 5. Gupta S, Srivastava M, Ahmad N, Sakamoto K, Bostwick DG, Mukhtar H. Lipoxygenase-5 is overexpressed in prostate adenocarcinoma. Cancer. 2001 [cited 9 May 2008];91(4):737-43. 6. Steele VE, Holmes CA, Hawk ET, Kopelovich L, Lubet RA, Crowell JA, et al. Lipoxygenase inhibitors as potential cancer chemopreventives. Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention. 1999 [cited 9 May 2008];8(5):467-83. 7. Yoshimura R, Matsuyama M, Kuratsukuri K, Tsuchida K, Takemoto Y, Nakatani T. A novel approach to anticancer therapies for prostate cancer: Lipoxygenase as a new target in the treatment of prostate cancer. Drugs of the Future. 2005 [cited 9 May 2008];30(4):351-7. 8. Moretti RM, Marelli MM, Sala A, Motta M, Limonta P. Activation of the orphan nuclear receptor RORα counteracts the proliferative effect of fatty acids on prostate cancer cells: Crucial role of 5-lipoxygenase. International Journal of Cancer. 2004 [cited 9 May 2008];112(1):87-93. 9. Matsuyama M, Yoshimura R, Mitsuhashi M, Hase T, Tsuchida K, Takemoto Y, et al. Expression of lipoxygenase in human prostate cancer and growth reduction by its inhibitors. International journal of oncology. 2004 [cited 9 May 2008];24(4):821-7. 10. Ghosh J, Myers CE. Inhibition of arachidonate 5-lipoxygenase triggers massive apoptosis in human prostate cancer cells. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 1998 [cited 9 May 2008];95(22):13182-7. 11. Ammon HPT. Boswellic acids (compounds of francincense) as active principles for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases. Wiener Medizinische Wochenschrift. 2002 [cited 14 May 2008];152(15-16):373-8. 12. Poeckel D, Werz O. Boswellic acids: Biological actions and molecular targets. Current Medicinal Chemistry. 2006 [cited 9 May 2008];13(28):3359-69. 13. Bishnoi M, Patil CS, Kumar A, Kulkarni SK. Potentiation of antinociceptive effect of NSAIDs by a specific lipooxygenase inhibitor, acetyl 11-keto-beta boswellic acid. Indian Journal of Experimental Biology. 2006 [cited 14 May 2008];44(2):128-32. 14. Büchele B, Zugmaier W, Estrada A, Genze F, Syrovets T, Paetz C, et al. Characterization of 3α-acetyl-11-keto-α-boswellic acid, a pentacyclic triterpenoid inducing apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. Planta Medica. 2006 [cited 7 May 2008];72(14):1285-9. 15. Lu M, Xia L, Hua H, Jing Y. Acetyl-keto-β-boswellic acid induces apoptosis through a death receptor 5-mediated pathway in prostate cancer cells. Cancer Research. 2008 [cited 7 May 2008];68(4):1180-6. 16. Yuan H-, Kong F, Wang X-, Young CYF, Hu X-, Lou H-. Inhibitory effect of acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid on androgen receptor by interference of Sp1 binding activity in prostate cancer cells. Biochemical Pharmacology [cited 27 April 2008]. 17. Syrovets T, Gschwend JE, Büchele B, Laumonnier Y, Zugmaier W, Genze F, et al. Inhibition of IκB kinase activity by acetyl-boswellic acids promotes apoptosis in androgen-independent PC-3 prostate cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2005 [cited 7 May 2008];280(7):6170-80. 18. Nimptsch K, Rohrmann S, Linseisen J. Dietary intake of vitamin K and risk of prostate cancer in the heidelberg cohort of the european prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC-heidelberg). American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2008 [cited 7 May 2008];87(4):985-92. 19. Mantena SK, Sharma SD, Katiyar SK. Berberine, a natural product, induces G1-phase cell cycle arrest and caspase-3-dependent apoptosis in human prostate carcinoma cells. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics. 2006 [cited 7 May 2008];5(2):296-308. 20. Meeran SM, Katiyar S, Katiyar SK. Berberine-induced apoptosis in human prostate cancer cells is initiated by reactive oxygen species generation. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology [cited 7 May 2008].