Ginkgo Biloba tegen baarmoederkanker.*

Uit een onderzoek onder meer dan 1200 vrouwen blijkt dat het regelmatig nemen van Ginkgo Biloba de kans op baarmoederkanker wel met 60-70% kan verminderen. Uit laboratorium proeven blijkt dat het de bioactieve stoffen in Ginkgo, ginkgolide A en B terpenen hiervoor verantwoordelijk zijn. 

Possible Chemoprevention of Ovarian Cancer by the Herbal, Ginkgo Biloba
Researchers in Boston, led by Drs. Bin Ye and Daniel Cramer of Brigham and Women's Hospital, have developed new laboratory and epidemiological evidence that demonstrates, for the first time, that ginkgo biloba appears to lower the risk of developing ovarian cancer.
In a population-based study which involved more than 600 ovarian cancer cases and 640 healthy, matched controls, women who took ginkgo supplements for six months or longer were shown to have a 60 percent lower risk for ovarian cancer.
Ye and his colleagues found that ginkgo, echinacea, St. John's Wort, ginseng, and chondroitin were the most commonly used herbals among study participants. A further analysis of the data showed that ginkgo was the only herb linked to ovarian cancer prevention. The preventive effect was more pronounced in women with non-muncious ovarian cancers, with data showing that ginkgo may reduce the risk of this type of ovarian cancer by 65-70 percent. "Among the mixture of ginkgo chemicals," said Ye, "we found laboratory evidence that ginkgolide A and B--terpene compounds--are the most active components contributing to this protective effect."
Ye's team, which included scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard Medical School, Boston University and Linden Bioscience, next took the evidence demonstrated by their population studies to the laboratory. In vitro experiments showed that a low dosage of ginkgolide caused ovarian cancer cells to stop growing. They observed significant cell cycle blockage in non-mucinous ovarian cancer cells. Ginkgolides appeared to be less effective against the mucinous type of ovarian cancer cells.
"While the detailed mechanism of ginkgo action on ovarian cancer cells is not yet well understood," Ye explained, "from the existing literature it most likely that ginkgo and ginkgolides are involved in anti-inflammation and anti-angiogenesis processes via many extra- and intra-cellular signal pathways. In the future, these findings could potentially offer a new strategy for ovarian cancer prevention and therapy, using the active forms of ginkgolides."
Ovarian cancer is the most deadly of all gynecological cancers. It is called a "silent killer" because most cases are discovered only in very advanced stages. Ginkgo Biloba and Ginkgolides as Potential Agents for Ovarian Cancer Prevention
Abstract # 3654, Bin Ye, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Mass.
Poster Session A. 5:30 p.m., Monday, October 31, 2005.