Do You Like Curry? And Onions?

A small pilot study done at Johns Hopkins Hospital suggests that curry and/or onions may be good for people at risk of colon cancer. Five patients diagnosed with an inherited condition called familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) were given regular doses of curcumin (the chemical found in turmeric) and quercetin, an antioxidant found in onions, for about 6 months. They then had a follow-up colonoscopy.

The average number of polyps dropped 60%, and the average size dropped by 51%.

Normally, FAP patients have literally hundreds of colorectal polyps that eventually become malignant i.e. colon cancer. Both the compounds tested have been considered to provide some degree of protection from large bowel cancer, which led to this small study. The findings are encouraging: the amount of quercetin given (20 mg three times a day) was similar to that eaten by many people; however, the dose of curcumin given – 480 mg daily – was many times what most people would eat in a typical diet.

This study showed the possible benefits of curcumin treatment. However, curry powder only contains about 5% curcumin, so simply switching to a curry diet isn’t going to provide the protection seen in the study. It’s up to the pharmaceutical companies to provide it in a suitable dosage form – after further careful testing has shown it’s safe and effective.

Before such a treatment is added to all the other things we take to reduce risk of dire diseases, we should be sure that FAP is representative of the polyposis that happens in ‘normal’ people (i.e. those without the genetic background for FAP). If that turns out to be the case, the threat of colorectal cancer may be greatly reduced.