Using a cervical cancer cell line, scientists demonstrated that nutrients from blueberries can boost the cancer-fighting power of radiation treatments from 20 to 70 percent by increasing cancer cell death and inhibiting cancer cell growth. Treatment with the blueberry extract alone also suppressed growth of the cancer cell line slightly better than radiation (25 vs. 20 percent).
This study suggests that eating blueberries may be a strategy for cancer patients to enhance their radiation treatment.
Unlike other scientific studies which test potential treatments on animals, this study identified a food that can potentially serve as medicine by testing its effectiveness in human cells and increasing the relevance of the results for human patients.
Davidson KT, Zhu Z, Bai Q, Xiao H, Wakefield MR, Fang Y. Blueberry as a Potential radiosensitizer for treating cervical cancer. Pathol Oncol Res. Published online September 30, 2017. doi: 10.1007/s12253-017-0319-y