Study finds broccoli extract could inhibit breast cancer cells

Reporter: 
Nutraingredients.com

According to a Nutra Ingredients article, researchers believe that eliminating the CSCs is key to controlling cancer and in findings published in Clinical Cancer Research they found that, in both mice and cell cultures, sulforaphane targeted and killed the cancer stem cells and prevented new tumours from growing.


The researchers report that recent studies indicate CSCs have the capacity to drive tumor resistance and relapse/recurrence of cancer, with evidence building for the theory that a variety of cancers are driven and sustained by a small proportion of CSCs. They argue that a lack of efficacy of current chemotherapies in advance and metastatic disease requires novel approaches to specifically target CSC populations.


The article indicates the anticancer efficacy of sulforaphane, derived from broccoli/broccoli sprouts, has been evaluated in various cancers and the risk of premenopausal breast cancer was shown to be inversely associated with broccoli consumption.


Furthermore, as a chemoprevention agent, sulforaphane possesses many advantages, such as high bioavailability and low toxicity. According to the researchers, sulforaphane from broccoli extracts is efficiently and rapidly absorbed in the human small intestine and distributed throughout the body.


Clinical trials



  • Previous studies, said the researchers, provide a strong rationale for investigating the chemoprevention property of sulforaphane in clinical trials, and its chemoprevention properties against cancer through both ‘blocking’ and ‘suppressing’ effects.

  • The concentrations of sulforaphane used in the study were higher than what can be achieved by eating broccoli or broccoli sprouts, and they added that prior research suggests the concentrations needed to impact cancer can be absorbed by the body from the broccoli extract, but side effects are not known.

  • A method is currently being developed to extract and preserve sulforaphane.

  • Researchers will then develop a clinical trial to test it for the prevention and treatment for breast cancer.


According to the article, this research suggests a potential new treatment that could be combined with other compounds to target breast cancer stem cells. Developing treatments that effectively target the cancer stem cell population is essential for improving outcomes.