Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Dentistry are conducting a clinical trial to determine whether an antimicrobial food additive found in cheese can be used to treat oral squamous cell cancer.
The study builds on preclinical studies that showed that nisin supplementation reduced the number of oral cancer tumors in mice, extending their lives without side effects or organ changes. According to the university, nisin not only preferentially killed oral cancer cells over normal cells, but also bacteria that cause gum disease, which is also associated with oral cancer.
In January, phase I and II trials began to evaluate whether nisin can reduce the number of oral cancers, prevent their recurrence, and improve gum disease in people. A phase III study will compare the safety and effectiveness of nisin with the current standard of care for oral squamous cell carcinoma in hundreds or thousands of patients with varying stages of the disease.
“Who would have thought that a molecule from a probiotic bacterium found in cheese could help fight oral cancer?” said Dr. Yvonne Hernandez-Capila, PhD, the study’s lead author and associate dean for research at the School of Dentistry. “To our knowledge, our lab’s research group was the first to report this in the literature and the first to conduct a clinical trial on the topic.”
Researchers hope that nisin could potentially help treat other types of cancer, including mitigating the serious side effects associated with traditional treatments, including chemotherapy.