For Which Cancer Types Should I Avoid Ursolic Acid Supplement?

Highlights

Nutritional supplements and extracts like Ursolic Acid have benefits and are used by cancer patients and those at-genetic risk of cancer. There is limited or hardly any clinical data available for use of nutritional supplements and foods in cancer patients. Generating clinical evidence of efficacy for cancer through a randomized clinical trial is further infeasible due to variations in genetics and cancer chemotherapy treatments across cancer patients. Hence a different and new approach is needed to find out for which cancers you should not take Ursolic Acid supplement and why should not take them?

Is it okay to take Ursolic Acid extracts or supplements for all cancer indications and any chemotherapy treatment? A common belief but a myth is that everything natural can only be of benefit and do no harm. For example, the use of grapefruit with certain medications is not recommended. Another example is the use of spinach with some blood thinning medications can cause adverse interactions and hence to be avoided. For cancer, nutrition including plant-based foods and supplements can influence outcomes and hence an extremely important decision which needs to be made. Hence NIH-National Cancer Institute has a website for nutrition for cancer care for patients which are generalized recommendations and not personalized for cancer indication and treatments.

A frequently asked question by cancer patients and those at-risk is “What Foods and Nutritional Supplements could be beneficial over others for me?”. “Who should not take an extract or supplement and why?”. Generic guidelines like eating only plant-based-foods or avoiding all sugar or adopting a keto diet is a good start but not actionable and personalized enough.

To find answers to questions on extracts and nutritional supplements and foods requires knowledge of contained active ingredients; genetic mutation prevalence for cancer indication; understanding of underlying cancer biology; chemotherapy treatments and mechanism of actions of active ingredients.

Taking Ursolic Acid extracts or nutritional supplements may benefit Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma patients on Cisplatin treatment over Sarpgandhaghan Vati nutritional supplements. But Ursolic Acid supplements or Ursolic Acid extracts offer less benefit if on Pembrolizumab treatment for Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma compared to Fenugreek. Similarly, taking nutritional supplements Ursolic Acid may benefit healthy individuals who are at genetic risk of cancer due to mutation of gene MLH1 over Fava Bean. But avoid nutritional supplements Ursolic Acid when at genetic risk of cancer due to mutation of gene POLE.

The takeaway being – cancer, genomics, treatments and other personalized factors will influence decision making to questions like: Are extracts or nutritional supplements Ursolic Acid beneficial and should not be taken? Why should Ursolic Acid be not taken? Who should not take Ursolic Acid? What are side effects of Ursolic Acid with Pembrolizumab chemotherapy? What are the benefits of Ursolic Acid for cancer? Can Ursolic Acid help fight cancer and so on.

Whenever there are changes in chemotherapy treatments or cancer tissue genetics – the nutrition may change and hence needs to be re-evaluated. Do consider factors like cancer indication, ongoing chemotherapy treatments and nutritional supplements, age, gender, weight, height, lifestyle and genetics for personalization of nutrition.

Brief Overview

Use of nutritional supplements – vitamins, herbs, minerals, probiotics, and other specialty categories are increasing. Supplements are high concentrations of active ingredients which are also found in different foods. Difference between supplements and foods being that foods contain more than one active ingredient at much lower concentrations. Every active ingredient in an extract or nutritional supplement or food has a unique mechanism of action which can influence nutrition decisions.

These are some example questions which nutrition planning should help answer for you. Should you take supplements Ursolic Acid? Should you take it when at genetic risk of cancer for mutation of gene MLH1? Should you take it when at genetic risk of cancer for mutation of gene POLE? Should you take it when diagnosed with Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma? Should you take it when diagnosed with Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma? Should you take it when on Cisplatin treatment? Should you continue taking it if you change your treatment from Cisplatin to Pembrolizumab? So a general explanation like – it is organic and plant-based or it increases immunity is not sufficient information for making a decision of use of Ursolic Acid extracts and nutritional supplements.

Cancer

Genetic variations across cancer patients can be different and hence no two cancers are alike. The improved availability of “personalized to genetics” chemotherapy treatments and cancer disease monitoring via blood and saliva have been significant factors to improve outcomes. The earlier the lifestyle and treatment intervention – the better the influence on outcome. Genetic testing has the potential to assess cancer risk and susceptibility early. But for at-risk individuals besides regular monitoring in most cases there are no therapeutic treatment intervention options available. After diagnosis with cancer such as Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma or Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma, the treatments get personalized to tumor genomics and factors like staging of disease, age and gender. During cancer remission (after treatment cycle is complete) – monitoring is used for assessment of any relapse and accordingly decide on next steps. A large majority of cancer patients and those at-risk may take nutritional supplements like Ursolic Acid.

So the question is that are all genetic risks and cancer indications to be considered uniformly when making decisions on the use of Ursolic Acid extracts or nutritional supplements? Are the biochemical pathway implications of genetic risk for cancer due to mutation of gene MLH1 the same as due to mutation of gene POLE? Are the implications of Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma the same as Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma? Is it one and the same if you are on treatment with Pembrolizumab or Cisplatin?

Ursolic Acid – An Extract or Nutritional Supplement

Ursolic acid is a triterpenoid natural compound found in fruit peels and in different herbs and spices. Ursolic acid is widely used in the form of dietary supplements. It may also have cancer-fighting potential. Following are some of the potential health benefits of Ursolic Acid: 

• May have antiinflammatory effects (Dharambir Kashyap et al, Recent Pat Inflamm Allergy Drug Discov., 2016)
• May help reduce weight, obesity, glucose intolerance and fatty liver disease (Steven D Kunkel et al, PLoS One., 2012)
• May help improve heart health (Dae Yun Seo et al, Korean J Physiol Pharmacol., 2018)
• May help build muscle

However, excess intake of Ursolic acid supplements may lead to certain side effects in some people like nausea, swelling in the stomach, skin rashes, blood in the urine and high sodium levels.  

Ursolic Acid supplements contain many active ingredients including Ursolic Acid at different concentration levels. The molecular pathways which are regulated by Ursolic Acid include RUNX Signaling, Interferon Signaling, DNA Repair and Cell Cycle Checkpoints. These biochemical pathways directly or indirectly regulate specific cancer molecular endpoints like growth, spread and death of cancer cells. Because of this biological regulation – for cancer nutrition, the right choice of supplements like Ursolic Acid individually or in combination is an important decision to be made. When making decisions on the use of supplement Ursolic Acid over other nutritional supplements – do consider all these factors.

Who Should not take Ursolic Acid Supplements and Why?

There is no easy way to answer the question “For which cancers should I not chooseUrsolic Acid nutritional supplements”. Just like the same chemotherapy treatment does not work across patients, for similar reasons Ursolic Acid in comparison with other nutritional supplements may be beneficial or not. Along with which cancer and associated genetics – the ongoing treatments, lifestyle habits, height, weight and food allergies are all factors in deciding if Ursolic Acid should be avoided or not and why.

1. Will Ursolic Acid Supplements benefit Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma patients undergoing Pembrolizumab treatment?

Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma is characterized and driven by specific genetic mutations like GRIN3A, TMEM26 and TP53 leading to biochemical pathway changes in Interferon Signaling, Cell Cycle Checkpoints and Apoptosis. A cancer treatment like Pembrolizumab works through a specific pathway mechanism of action. The goal is to have a good overlap between the treatment and cancer driving pathways for a personalized approach which is effective. In such a condition any food or nutritional supplement which has a contrary effect to the treatment or reduces the overlap should be avoided. As an example, Ursolic Acid supplement should not be taken for Primary Mucinous Stomach Adenocarcinoma along with treatment Pembrolizumab. Ursolic Acid supplement impacts the biochemical pathway called Interferon Signaling which either promotes drivers of the disease and/or nullifies the treatment effect. Some of the factors which should be considered when choosing nutrition are type of cancer, treatments and supplements being taken currently (if any

2. Will Ursolic Acid Supplements benefit Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients undergoing Cisplatin Treatment?

Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma is characterized and driven by specific genetic mutations like ABRAXAS1, PIK3CB and NUP93 leading to biochemical pathway changes in RUNX Signaling, Hematopoiesis and Inositol Phosphate Signaling. A cancer treatment like Cisplatin works through specific pathway mechanisms. The goal is to have a good overlap between the treatment and cancer driving pathways for a personalized approach. In such a condition any food or nutritional supplement which supports treatment action or improves the overlap should be considered. As an example, Ursolic Acid supplements should be considered for Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma along with the treatment Cisplatin. Ursolic Acid supplement impacts pathways/processes like RUNX Signaling which either obstruct drivers of Primary Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma and/or improve Cisplatin treatment effect.

3. What about Ursolic Acid Supplements for Healthy Individuals with POLE Mutation associated Genetic Risk?

Different companies offer panels of genes to be tested for assessing genetic risk to different cancers. These panels cover genes associated with cancers of the breast, ovary, uterus, prostate, and gastrointestinal system and others. Genetic testing of these genes may confirm a diagnosis and help guide treatment and management decisions. Identification of a disease-causing variant may also guide testing and diagnosis of at-risk relatives. POLE is one of the genes generally available in panels for cancer risk testing.

POLE mutation causes biochemical pathways/processes like DNA Repair and Chromatin Remodeling to get impacted. These pathways are direct or indirect drivers of cancer molecular endpoints. Ursolic Acid should not be taken when the genetic panel identifies mutation of POLE for Colon Cancer. Ursolic Acid impacts pathways/processes like DNA Repair and creates adverse conditions with POLE.

4. What about Ursolic Acid Supplements for Healthy Individuals with MLH1 Mutation associated Genetic Risk?

MLH1 is one of the genes available in panels for cancer risk testing. MLH1 mutation causes biochemical pathways/processes like Cell Cycle Checkpoints and Mismatch Repair to get impacted. These pathways are direct or indirect drivers of cancer molecular endpoints. Ursolic Acid supplements may be considered when the genetic panel identifies mutations in MLH1 for Colon Cancer. Ursolic Acid impacts pathways/processes like Cell Cycle Checkpoints and creates a canceling effect in those individuals with MLH1 mutation.

* Other Factors are also included like BMI, Treatments, Lifestyle Habits

In Conclusion

It is important to remember that cancer chemotherapy treatments and nutrition are never the same for everyone. Food and nutritional supplements like Ursolic Acid are chosen by you and can influence outcomes.

“What should I eat?” is a commonly asked question by cancer patients and those at-risk. The answer to this question depends on cancer indication, underlying genetics, current chemotherapy treatments, food allergies, lifestyle information, and food preferences.

The addon.life approach to nutrition personalization uses knowledge of active ingredients contained in foods and nutritional supplements, cancer biology, chemotherapy treatment action and genetic mutation prevalence across cancer indications. addon.life team of clinicians, clinical scientists and engineers are experts in cancer biology focusing only on nutrition personalization for cancer patients and those at-risk.

What food you eat and which supplements you take is a decision you make. Your decision should include consideration of the cancer gene mutations, which cancer, ongoing treatments and supplements, any allergies, lifestyle information, weight, height and habits.

The nutrition planning for cancer from addon is not based on internet searches. It automates the decision making for you based on molecular science implemented by our scientists and software engineers. Irrespective of whether you care to understand the underlying biochemical molecular pathways or not - for nutrition planning for cancer that understanding is needed.

Get started NOW with your nutrition planning by answering questions on the name of cancer, genetic mutations, ongoing treatments and supplements, any allergies, habits, lifestyle, age group and gender.

References

• A new ursane triterpene from Monochaetum vulcanicum that inhibits DNA polymerase beta lyase.
• [Surgical treatment of open bite].
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• Mutational landscape of metastatic cancer revealed from prospective clinical sequencing of 10,000 patients.
• Major triterpenoids in Chinese hawthorn Crataegus pinnatifida” and their effects on cell proliferation and apoptosis induction in MDA-MB-231 cancer cells.”
• cBioPortal for Cancer Genomics
• RUNX3 contributes to carboplatin resistance in epithelial ovarian cancer cells.
• Cancer therapy shapes the fitness landscape of clonal hematopoiesis.