Breast cancer cells  even the most aggressive type   died after treatments with peach and plum extracts in lab tests at Texas AgriLife Research recently  and scientists say the results are delicious
Not only did the cancerous cells keel over  but the normal cells were not harmed in the process  and researchers say the results come from a compound in peaches and plums  AgriLife Research scientists say two phenolic compounds are responsible for the cancer cell deaths in the study  which was published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry
 It was a differential effect which is what you re looking for because in current cancer treatment with chemotherapy  the substance kills all cells  so it is really tough on the body   said Dr  David Byrne  AgriLife Research plant breeder who studies stone fruit   Here  there is a five fold difference in the toxic intensity  You can put it at a level where it will kill the cancer cells   the very aggressive ones   and not the normal ones 
Dr  David Byrne and Dr  Luis Cisneros Zevallos originally studied the antioxidants and phytonutrients in plums and found them to match or exceed the blueberry which had been thought of as superior to other fruits in those categories
 The following step was to choose some of these high antioxidant commercial varieties and study their anticancer properties   Cisneros Zevallos said   And we chose breast cancer as the target because it s one of the ones with highest incidence among women  So it is of big concern   The World Health Organization reports that breast cancer accounts for 16 percent of the cancer deaths of women globally
Cisneros Zevallos  an AgriLife Research food scientist  said the team compared normal cells to two types of breast cancer  including the most aggressive type  The cells were treated with an extract from two commercial varieties   Rich Lady  peach and  Black Splendor  plum    These extracts killed the cancer cells but not the normal cells   Cisneros Zevallos said   A closer look at the extracts determined that two specific phenolic acid components   chlorogenic and neochlorogenic acids  were responsible for killing the cancer cells while not affecting the normal cells  Cisneros Zevallos said
The researchers said the two compounds are very common in fruits  but the stone fruits such as plums and peaches have especially high levels 
 So this is very attractive from the point of view of being an alternative to typical chemotherapy which kills normal cells along with cancerous ones   Byrne added   The team said laboratory tests also confirmed that the compounds reduced the rate of cancer growth in animals given the compounds
Byrne plans to examine more fully the lines of the varieties that were tested to see how these compounds might be incorporated into his research of breeding plums and peaches while Cisneros Zevallos will continue testing these extracts and compounds in different types of cancer and further study the molecular mechanisms involved
The work documenting the health benefits of stone fruit has been supported by the Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center at Texas A M University  the U S  Department of Agriculture  and the California Tree Fruit Agreement 
About California Tree Fruit Agreement
California Tree Fruit Agreement or California PPN represents California s more than 1 100 growers of fresh peaches  plums and nectarines  Originally established in 1933 and headquartered in Reedley  California  in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley  California PPN administers marketing order programs on behalf of California s fresh peach  plum and nectarine farmers  In order to spread awareness to industry and consumers on all things related to California stone fruits  California PPN has developed an informative site www eatcaliforniafruit com