Good news for those who need treatments for leukemia: new research reveals that Parthenolide, a compound present in the Feverfew plant, could kill leukemia stem cells without harming healthy blood cells. It was found out that after 18 hours, leukemia cells exposed to Parthenolide was destroyed. This is better than Cytaribine, a common drug used in chemotherapy, because Cytaribine is known to decrease blood cells within the bone marrow. Parthenolide may also make cancerous cells more sensitive to cancer-fighting agents so that destruction of these may be speeded up. With a little modification and testing, it would be an effective cure against this dreaded disease.

In Ayurveda, Leukemia is viewed as an imbalance which results from the failure of the digestive system. The food is not ingested and broken down properly. This creates a poisonous slime which circulates in the body and kills the healthy parts in it. To remedy this, the three elements of vata, pitta and kapha present in the body must be rebalanced. This can be done through a balanced diet. Eating raw fruit and vegetables purifies the toxins in the digestive system. Also, a relaxed lifestyle will do wonders, along with proper sleep and exercise. By doing these, the toxins will be removed, the balance restored and positive energies are freer to heal the body.

The revolution of cell and molecular biology has made enormous strides in understanding the molecular pathology of cancer and in defining therapeutic targets. Antibody based technology leads the way of generating advanced cancer treatments. This was achieved by the realization of mass production of antibody and by the understanding of the well-defined therapeutic target antibody interacts with. Rituxan, the first ever antibody used for human cancer treatment, was approved for patients with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in November 1997 and was expanded its indications to other B cell tumors in February 2006. Many cancer cells require signals mediated by epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) for their survival. Erbitux binds to EGFR, prevents tumor growth, and is being used for treatment of colorectal, head and neck, and lung cancers.

Heceptin attaches to human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, prevents the tumor cell growth, and is applied for breast cancer treatment. One important hallmark of cancer is angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels. The growth of the endothelial cells that form the inner lining of the blood vessels is one of the most important step in establishing new blood vessels. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) makes a significant contribution to this process. Avastin binds to VEGF, inhibits the growth factor, prevents tumor angiogenesis and tumor growth, and is applied for treatment of colorectal and lung cancers.

Lymphoma is a serious affection which affects different parts of the body and usually occurs in many forms. One of the most severe form of lymphoma is known as Mantle cell lymphoma. In addition to this, Mantle cell lymphoma is a rare form of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma which tends to develop and spread very fast to other organs of the body. Due to the fact that Mantle cell lymphoma spreads very fast to different parts of the body, treatments of this type of affection should be good enough to reach to all the infected cells. Unlike chemotherapy which is the main form of treatment, bringing successfully results, other treatments, such as surgery or radiation therapy are not enough useful to reduce the cancer.

To begin with, chemotherapy has proved to be the most efficient treatment to treat Mantle cell lymphoma. Chemotherapy can be administrated in the form of injections, drips in the veins or even tablets. Much more, a treatment for this affection may include different types of drugs and the doses depend on the patient condition. In most cases, the treatments prescribed include the CHOP regimen, a combination of four drugs which is taken in a single day and repeated every three weeks for six ot eight cycles. Even though, chemotherapy brings important results, the disease may occur again. In order to prevent a recidivism of Mantle cell lymphoma, specialists use to prescribe chemotherapy combinations, such as treatments for leukemias. On the other hand, these combinations of chemotherapy might be very toxic for some patients who suffer from Mantle cell lymphoma.