Matthias Rath, the international research company founded by the scientist of the same name, has discovered that a number of specific nutrients can be used to prevent the invasion of cancer.
Speaking at the Natural Products Expo West in California this weekend, Dr Rath said that nutrients such as vitamin C and L-lysine which support connective tissue integrity can be used to control the harmful enzymatic activity which in turn can lead to cancer.
Ninety percent of all cancer fatalities result from metastasis, the invasion and spread of cancerous cells to other parts of the body, Dr Rath said. To facilitate their spread, cancer cells secrete enzymes that degrade surrounding connective tissue, and it was this enzymatic activity that scientists at the Matthias Rath research facility set out to understand and control, he explained.
The scientists combined various types of cancer cells with nutritive agents and discovered that they were unable to pass through the collagen membrane and thereby spread to other parts of the body. Cancer cells which were not combined with the nutritive agents spread through the membrane as usual.
The most powerful and effective nutrient combination for inhibiting the spread of cancer cells contained vitamin C, L-lysine, L-proline and a polyphenol fraction of green tea.
"The results of these experiments confirm that many cancers can be treated with the use of nutrients," said Dr Rath. "This paves the way for a new approach to cancer treatment without the devastating effects of chemotherapy and radiation. This is an exciting discovery for cancer patients and physicians alike."