Ohio State University researchers have found that an ingredient in a Chinese herbal therapy halts cancer cells from moving into the brain or growing once they migrate there.
"It appears to stop the tumor cells in their tracks," said Dr. E. Antonio Chiocca, professor and chairman of neurological surgery at Ohio State.
The researchers tested the compound in mice and found that the ingredient, called indirubin, also reduced blood flow to the tumors, which prevented the glioblastoma cells from growing.
"If you're diagnosed with that disease, it's a death sentence," said Sean Lawler, a co-author of the study who now works at the University of Leeds in England.
"This approach may be a step in the right direction of limiting tumor growth."
Researchers also found that there was a significant survival rate among the mice tested. The study recently was published online in the journal Cancer Research.
Chiocca said there are two types of tumors -- those that grow and push away from the brain (they can be treated with surgery, radiation and chemotherapy) and those that invade the brain.
"These are the ones we cannot treat," Chiocca said.
But indirubin seems to stop the invasion from taking place, he said.
