In 7 Secrets to Health, Beauty and Longevity, I cited a discovery by a Georgetown University study that lauded cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and watercress as cancer preventative due to a compound known as indole-3-carbinol. Recently, scientists at Georgetown University have discovered another biochemical basis for the evident cancer-combating ability of these vegetables. They have found that isothiocyanates (or ITCs) in these vegetables seem to selectively block certain defective genes associated with cancer. When the tumor suppressor gene, which is vital to maintaining cellular health, is mutated, it ceases to protect against abnormal cellular growth. This mutation is believed to occur in half of all human cancers. When scientists tested this theory by studying naturally occurring ITC’s on different cancer cells, they found that ITC’s  seem to remove the defective gene without harming the normal gene.

Could naturally sourced compounds improve or replace current cancer treatments one day?