Soybean antioxidants could help fight lung cancer

Soy antioxidants help destroy cancer.

Three isoflavones in soy make lung cancer tumors more amenable to radiation treatment

Researchers say genistein in soy is known to help fight lung cancer. New research shows three isoflavones make it harder for cancer cells to survive. The effect of the antioxidants could boost the effectiveness of radiation cancer treatment.

The scientists used human cancer cell lines to study the impact of genistein, daidzein, and glycitein in soybeans on cancer cells They found the isoflavones are even more potent than genistein that has been used in clinical trials in pill form as a pretreatment for cancer therapy.

The scientists studied soy in  A549 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. They say soy damages DNA in cancer cells, making them easier to destroy with radiation.

The findings are important because soy is a non-toxic way to treat cancer and won't harm healthy tissue.

The study was conducted by Wayne State University's School of Medicine and the Karmanos Cancer Institute and published in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, 

Soy sensitizes cancer cells so they can be destroyed by radiation and also provides antioxidants to protect healthy tissue.