Effect Ofuncariaandtabebuiaextracts on Molecular Epidemiological Biomarkers in Patients with Colorectal Cancer

The combined effect of surgical treatment and consumption of so-called “CoD™ tea” (containing Uncaria guianensis, U. tomentosa and Tabebuia avellanedae) on expression of c-myc, Ha-ras, Bcl-2, Ki-ras and p53 key onco/suppressor genes, the carbohydrate antigen (CA19-9) and carcino-embryonic antigen (CEA) tumour markers in blood samples of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) were investigated. Expression of genes followed the effect of the surgical treatment combined with neoadjuvant chemotherapeutic treatment; this may predict the outcome of carcinoma. Moreover their expressions might show possible additional effect of supportive therapy, e.g. CoD™ consumption. The antioxidant capacity of blood was also examined. Blood samples were taken at the day of, and one week, 3, 6 and 12 months after the surgical treatment. During that period patients got 0.25 l standard portion of CoD™ tea three times a day. The surgical treatment and neoadjuvant therapy were able to suppress the expression of c-myc, Ha-ras, Bcl-2, Ki-ras, p53 genes up to the twelfth month. Moreover, CoD™ tea together with conventional treatment caused a strong decrease in the expression of c-myc and Ha-ras oncogenes in comparison to the non-consumer control.