Researchers from the University of Northern California and Columbia University have found that the exclusion of cysteine and methionine amino acids from the esophagus contributes to the process of self-destruction of cancer cells, reports New Atlas.

Researchers have focused on the study of glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive forms of brain cancer. Experiments on animals have shown that a diet low in certain amino acids promotes the self-destruction of tumor cells and increases the effectiveness of chemotherapy. It is about cysteine and methionine, amino acids that contain sulfur. They are found in wheat, oatmeal, legumes, meat, fish and eggs.

The use of this approach in the experimental framework has enabled reducing the doses of toxic chemotherapy drugs, reducing their side effects for patients. This discovery opens the prospect of developing safer and more effective means of cancer treatment, when the body itself participates in the fight against this disease.

Currently, researchers have already started clinical trials to evaluate the effectiveness of this method in people with glioblastoma. However, they warn that the process of evaluating effectiveness and implementing such findings may take years.