We are involved in discussions with a leading rectal cancer specialist at a major research institution who has conducted his own animal studies and seen the exciting radio-protectant properties of tocotrienols first-hand. Having personally witnessed the permanent, life altering damage caused by radiation therapy to thousands of patients, he believes this will have a great positive impact on both the success of the treatment and the quality of life for survivors. He has also demonstrated that tocotrienols, while protecting healthy cells from the harms of ionizing radiation, act to sensitize tumors to radiation treatments.
He has submitted a proposal to team with us and perform a formal clinical trial with his patients to demonstrate the radiation-sensitizing effect of gamma-tocotrienol on colon cancer tumors. This provides an exciting opportunity to treat cancer patients with tocotrienol, as pre-clinical data suggests that tocotrienol treatment may also cause tumor shrinkage.
Any clinical trial data will be used to facilitate further research and business opportunities. Our goal is to design the clinical trial so useful data will be obtained regarding potential tumor shrinkage during the pre-radiation gamma-tocotrienol regimen, potential protection of healthy tissue when gamma-tocotrienol is administered before the radiation procedure, and the primary focus of enhanced tumor sensitivity to radiation treatment when gamma-tocotrienol has been administered and accumulated in the tumor.