Cure for cancer found in Canada, but Big Pharma says "NO" ,we cannot make a profit- DCA returns to the headlines

A wave of optimism is once again sweeping the world due to longstanding reports that researchers at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada have identified a treatment that could cure an unprecidented amount of cancers.

Reports from 2007 and 2008 are once again circulating and have sparked interest in cancer research involving the use of dichloroacetate (DCA), a well known substance used in the treatment of metabolic disorders.

"The DCA compound is not patented and not owned by any pharmaceutical company," says a University of Alberta report "and, therefore, would likely be an inexpensive drug to administer, says Dr. Evangelos Michelakis, the Canada Research Chair in Pulmonary Hypertension and Director of the Pulmonary Hypertension Program with Capital Health, one of Canada's largest health authorities."

In simple terms, DCA is thought to be effective in the treatment of cancer because "In human bodies there is a natural cancer fighting human cell, the mitochondria," reports HubPages "but they need to be triggered to be effective.

"Scientists used to think that these mitochondria cells were damaged" continues the report "and thus ineffective against cancer, so they used to focus on glycolysis, which is less effective in curing cancer and more wasteful.

"The drug manufacturers focused on this glycolysis method to fight cancer. This DCA on the other hand doesn’t rely on glycolysis instead on mitochondria; it triggers the mitochondria which in turn fights the cancer cells"

Other doctors and researchers around the world have not been as quick to jump on the "We Cured Cancer" parade float, including contributors to the ScienceBlogs website who offered counter enthusiasm via Dr Len's Cancer Blog to the growing swell in a report of their own.

This research still needs lots of work before we know whether it works or doesn't work, and whether it is really safe or not when given to patients with cancer under a variety of circumstances. If that sounds overly cautious, so be it. I have seen too many dashed hopes in my medical career which make me a bit cautious about reports like this. That's not to say I don't think it could work--it could, as I mentioned above--but I want to see evidence in well done trials that prove the point that DCA is effective in the treatment of which cancers under what circumstances. Early in my cancer training there was a substance isolated by a researcher that was supposedly non-toxic and would cure leukemia. The research center where I was working was inundated from people around the globe who wanted this treatment, especially after the lead researcher injected himself on a nationwide morning show to demonstrate its apparent lack of toxicity. Only grams of this medicine existed. Fortunes were offered in return for getting this miracle drug. But the miracle drug--after reasonable clinical trials were done--didn't work after all.

The most up to date news and information about the use of DCA can be found at The DCA Site, which has documentation about current clinical trials, warnings about fraudulant distribution of the drug and a lengthy resource center and support network.

What do you think about this story? Do you think the cure for cancer has been found or should the medical world stay cautious for the time being?

Is the cure for cancer in Canada, DCA returns to the headlines

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