Anticancer effects of dietary administration of secoisolariciresinol diglucoside in a patient of gastrointestinal stromal tumor: a case report

Hao Wu,Yao Wang,Gui-Rong Liu,Jia-Tao Chen,Shu-Lin Liu,Li-Ping Wang

doi:10.1097/ij9.0000000000000103

Abstract

Introduction: Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is among the leading malignancies of the digestive system. GIST is not susceptible to chemotherapies and is prone to recurrence or metastasis after surgical operation. Secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG) was suggested to have potential anticancer effects, but no clinical evidence had been available. Here we report successful treatment of a postoperative GIST case with dietary SDG. Presentation of Case: The patient was a 58-year-old man. He had GIST and received resection of small intestinal lesions 1 year before. He was diagnosed with postoperation of GIST and presented with high level of serum carbohydrate antigen 72-4 (CA72-4). The patient was then treated with dietary administration of SDG with his voluntary acceptance for 5 months, and underwent 2 serum CA72-4 measurements during this period. CA72-4 level of the patient was restored to normal range after treatment with dietary SDG for 1 month. There was no aberrant CA72-4 level, recurrence or metastasis after the treatment with dietary SDG. Discussion: This is to our knowledge the first report on application of dietary SDG on a postoperative GIST patient with aberrant level of serum CA72-4. SDG can be transformed into active substances with antitumor effects by human gut bacteria. Dietary SDG might inhibit tumorigenicity and malignant behavior of GIST cells. Conclusion: The excellent effects suggest dietary SDG to be a potential therapy for GIST, especially against recurrence or metastasis.

Highlights

Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is among the leading malignancies of the digestive system
carbohydrate antigen 72-4 (CA72-4) is a glycoprotein antigen that is highly expressed in a variety of tumors including GIST[23,24]
The drastically increased CA72-4 level suggests tumor recurrence or metastasis soon after the surgery and the rapid drop of the CA72-4 level to the normal range reflects effective suppression of the tumor recurrence or metastasis associated with the use of dietary Secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG)

Summary

Introduction

Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is one of the most common mesenchymal malignancies in the gastrointestinal tract, with no specific clinical manifestations to be used for diagnosis at early stages[1]. The patient did not receive any other treatment after the surgical operation He had another examination of serum tumor markers and a CT scan of the abdomen 1 year after GIST resection. As the patient refused to receive any chemotherapy, we treated him with dietary SDG, 15 g a dose twice a day, in the morning and at night He was told to pay attention to his general condition and to have CA72-4 reexamined on a monthly basis. During the period of dietary SDG administration, the patient kept reporting good physical conditions, indicating a good tolerability with dietary SDG intervention in addition to the excellent therapeutic effects He felt much stronger and regained normal routine activities including aerobics, better mood, and good sleep quality. This case is reported in accordance with the SCARE 2018 standard[22], and additional details can be found in the full SCARE list

Discussion

Findings

Ethical approval