An Indian Spice that Cures Cancer

Curcumin induces proapoptotic effects against human melanoma cells and modulates the cellular response to immunotherapeutic cytokines

Huh?

This is the title of a scientific paper co-authored Don Benson, a doctor/professor at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and James Cancer Hospital & Solove Research Institute.

In simple, non-scientist English, it means: drugs made from curcumin – which is found in the popular Indian spice turmeric – could cure multiple myeloma, a blood cancer similar to leukemia and lymphoma.

And, Don and his Molecular Therapeutic Team at The James are leading the way in the development of curcumin-based drugs. The team has patented and is in the early stages of testing two such wonder drugs: LLL12 and FLL32.

That's Don on the left at Pelotonia, along with his friend/fellow scientist Jeff Mason

“The old-school way of treating (multiple myeloma and other forms of cancer) was to cut it out,” said Don, who when he’s not writing scientific papers is easy to understand.

“But, that’s like, if your computer isn’t working, hitting it with a baseball bat. Instead, we need to understand what went wrong in the genetic code and fix it – and then you’re cured. That’s what these drugs can do.”

The drugs, he said, have the potential to shut off the switch in a person’s DNA that allows cancer cells to multiply. “The light switch is stuck in the on position and the cancer cells grow and divide,” Don said, adding the curcumin-based drugs could also cure other forms of cancer.

In tests on mice, the drugs have killed more than half the cancer cells – in the first 24 hours.

Scientists have known for years that curcumin kills cancer cells.

“But it’s very toxic,” Don said, crediting his fellow OSU scientist Tom Li with finding a way to “increase the cancer-fighting properties and decrease the toxicity” of curcumin. This led to the development of LLL12 and FLL32.

Don is also a Pelotonia rider – and said the money raised by the Pelotonia community “will accelerate our work.”

And this is vital, as the development of a single cancer-fighting drug can take 10 or more years and as much as $1 billion – with no guarantee of success. The Molecular Therapeutic Team’s two drugs are heading toward the clinical trial stage, but are still a long way – and millions of dollars – from FDA approval.

Easy going and modest, what this dedicated doctor doesn’t say is that he is one of the country’s leading experts on multiple myeloma.

“About 90 percent of my patients have multiple myeloma,” Don said. “There are about 700 cases diagnosed every year in Ohio – and we get about 500 patients a year. Most are from Ohio, but there are also patients from other states.”

Pelotonia rider Matt Hare is one of Don’s patients. He was diagnosed in August, days before the first Pelotonia ride, while at a Cleveland-area hospital. He read an article about Don and his work on multiple myeloma at The James.

“My dad e-mailed him the Friday night before Pelotonia,” Matt said. “He answered us that night and looked at everything and took over … He’s so incredible, so down-to-earth and will sit there during my appointments and talk to me as long as it takes and answer every one of my questions and always say, ‘What else can I do for you?’ I can e-mail him at 9:30 at night with a question – and he always e-mails me right back.”

Meet the Bensons (L to R): Leeanne, Don, Laura, Evan and Christopher

Matt’s right.

My interview with Don was delayed about 15 minutes while he talked to a patient who called his office to talk about some problems/concerns they were having.

And then he apologized to me for the delay.

Don – who is married and has three children – and his team and several of his patients rode together during the first Pelotonia. They will do so again this year and could have 100 or more riders, including Matt.

“It was an amazing experience,” Don said of the inaugural ride. “About two-thirds of the way up this big hill I was tired and was ready to take a break. Then we went around this corner and there was this little, white house with peeling paint. It was not a family of means … and they had a big plywood sign out front and with black spray paint wrote ‘A cancer survivor has lived here for 10 years thanks to The James.’ That was amazing – and I had to keep going.”

He was talking about the ride – but I’m pretty sure that consciously or maybe even subconsciously, he also meant his team’s work to cure multiple myeloma.