In a new study, researchers found that niacin, commonly called vitamin B3, combined with chemotherapy can help immune cells attack glioblastoma (a type of brain tumor), which may dramatically slow the progression of the disease.
The research was conducted by a team at the University of Calgary.
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive form of brain cancer. Even with treatment, chemotherapy, and radiation, most people die within 14 to 16 months of being diagnosed.
One of the reasons this cancer is so deadly is because it hijacks the immune system, suppressing it and reprogramming immune cells to work for the tumor.
In the study, the team targeted the immune system to help the body to attack and destroy the tumor stem cells.
They screened 1,040 compounds and found niacin had the properties needed to activate immune cells, specifically myeloid cells, and inhibit the growth of brain tumor-initiating stem cells.
They found that niacin therapy alone extended survival and that the combination therapy with temozolomide (a chemotherapy drug commonly used against glioblastoma) markedly prolonged survival by stimulating and re-educating immune cells to stop helping cancer and instead, destroy it.
The lifespan of mice with glioblastoma that received combination therapy tripled, increasing to 150 days from 40 days.
The team hopes to conduct a clinical trial first, even though this treatment involves two well-known, existing therapies.
It is important people don’t rush out and try adding niacin on their own, as scientists need to confirm dosage, delivery and length of time for optimum clinical results.
The lead author of the study is Dr. Wee Yong, Ph.D., a professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences and Oncology.
The study is published in Science Translational Medicine.
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