Ayahuasca and cancer treatment
This review of case reports and biomedical literature proposes a molecular–cellular model — emphasising N,N‑dimethyltryptamine activity at intracellular sigma‑1 receptors and the effects of harmala alkaloids — to account for anecdotal tumour responses to ayahuasca, and concludes these reports may have plausible biological underpinnings that warrant further safety and efficacy research.
Abstract
Objectives
Comprehensively review the evidence regarding the use of ayahuasca, an Amerindian medicine traditionally used to treat many different illnesses and diseases, to treat some types of cancer.
Methods
An in-depth review of the literature was conducted using PubMed, books, institutional magazines, conferences and online texts in nonprofessional sources regarding the biomedical knowledge about ayahuasca in general with a specific focus in its possible relations to the treatment of cancer.
Results
At least nine case reports regarding the use of ayahuasca in the treatment of prostate, brain, ovarian, uterine, stomach, breast, and colon cancers were found. Several of these were considered improvements, one case was considered worse, and one case was rated as difficult to evaluate. A theoretical model is presented which explains these effects at the cellular, molecular, and psychosocial levels. Particular attention is given to ayahuasca’s pharmacological effects through the activity of N,N-dimethyltryptamine at intracellular sigma-1 receptors. The effects of other components of ayahuasca, such as harmine, tetrahydroharmine, and harmaline, are also considered.
Conclusion
The proposed model, based on the molecular and cellular biology of ayahuasca’s known active components and the available clinical reports, suggests that these accounts may have consistent biological underpinnings. Further study of ayahuasca’s possible antitumor effects is important because cancer patients continue to seek out this traditional medicine. Consequently, based on the social and anthropological observations of the use of this brew, suggestions are provided for further research into the safety and efficacy of ayahuasca as a possible medicinal aid in the treatment of cancer.
Research Summary of 'Ayahuasca and cancer treatment'
Introduction
Schenberg situates ayahuasca as an Amazonian plant decoction traditionally used by healers for a wide range of purposes and suggests it may have utility in treating some cancers. Earlier reports and ethnographic observations have identified at least nine published cases in which cancer patients consumed ayahuasca during their illness; the cancers reported include prostate, colon, ovarian, breast, uterine, stomach and brain origins. Some of these reports included biochemical markers of improvement (for example, reductions in prostate-specific antigen or carcinoembryonic antigen), while others were ambiguous or subjective, leaving the clinical picture uncertain. The paper therefore sets out to review biomedical and non‑professional literature on ayahuasca with a specific focus on possible relationships to cancer treatment, and to present a theoretical model linking pharmacology, cellular mechanisms and psychosocial factors. Schenberg aims to synthesise available case reports and mechanistic data for the brew's principal active components—mainly N,N‑dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and β‑carbolines such as harmine—and to propose directions for further research into safety and efficacy given ongoing patient interest in this traditional medicine.
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Study Details
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Schenberg, E. E. (2013). Ayahuasca and cancer treatment. SAGE Open Medicine, 1. https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312113508389
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Cited By (5)
Papers in Blossom that reference this study
Maia, L. O., Daldegan-Bueno, D., Tófoli, L.F. · Journal of Psychoactive Drugs (2020)
Horák, M., Hasíková, L., Verter, N. et al. · Journal of Psychoactive Drugs (2018)
Hartogsohn, I. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2016)
Frecska, E., Bokor, P., Winkelman, M. J. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2016)
Szabo, A. · Frontiers in Immunology (2015)
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