Resveratrol May Boost Efficacy of Cancer Therapy

Mounting evidence suggests a diversity of therapeutic roles for resveratrol, an antioxidant compound found abundantly in grape skins and red wine. Previous research by Michael Nicholl, from the University of Missouri School of Medicine (Missouri, USA), and colleagues revealed that resveratrol can be an important adjunctive agent in the treatment of prostate cancer. Their current study found that melanoma cells become more susceptible to radiation if they were treated first with resveratrol. Specifically, the team found that when the cancer was treated with resveratrol alone, 44% of the tumor cells were killed. When the cancer cells were treated with a combination of both resveratrol and radiation, 65% of the tumor cells died. The study authors conclude that: "These data suggest that [reseveratrol] enhances radiation sensitivity of melanoma cells by inhibiting proliferation and promoting apoptosis. Resveratrol may have a potential role as a radiation sensitizer for melanoma treatment."