A powerful breakthrough treatment for cancer may already be in your kitchen pantry.
Researchers say old fashioned potatoes could contain a “powerful” ingredient for the treatment of cancer.
According to a study by academic researchers in Poland, potatoes contain an ingredient called glycoalkaloids that has cancer-fighting properties.
A new peer-reviewed study published in Frontiers in Pharmacology examined the properties found in potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, goji berries and huckleberries that have chemotherapeutic potential.
Chemotherapy kills fast-growing cells like cancer, but the side effects are profoundly harsh.
Medicinal plants, such as potatoes, are easier to tolerate and safer for healthy cells than chemotherapy.
“Scientists around the world are still searching for the drugs which will be lethal to cancer cells — but at the same time safe for healthy cells,” Magdalena Winkiel, biologist and lead study author, said in a statement.
“That is why it might be worth going back to medicinal plants that were used years ago with success in the treatment of various ailments.”
Winkiel explained that if chemicals found in plants can’t replace cancer drugs, “maybe combined therapy will increase the effectiveness of treatment.”
Plants are already commonly used to fight cancer. The chemotherapy drug Taxol is made from tree bark.
