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Related: About this forumGrapefruit Juice Improves Cancer Medication
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=grapefruit-juice-improvesGrapefruit juice, long known to have dangerous interactions with numerous prescription medications, appears to actually improve the use of a promising cancer drug.
Researchers at University of Chicago Medicine found that a glass of grapefruit juice so improved the body's uptake of a potent drug called sirolimus that they could cut the drug dosage by a third to reach the same desired effect as a full dose.
The lower dose meant that patients had far fewer side effects from the drug. If this same mechanism can work on similar drugs something the researchers say is hopeful doctors could prescribe other medications at lower doses, reducing side effects and saving money.
The study is reported today (Aug. 7) in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.
bemildred
(90,061 posts)I love grapefruit juice.
supernova
(39,345 posts)The idea that you shouldn't take meds and drink/eat grapefruit.
Take for example the infamous coumadin effect. If eating grapefruit causes over absorption, doesn't that mean that if you want to eat grapefruit, that you take less of a dose? Isn't that a good thing?
In the 90s, an older lady I once knew had a heart valve replaced with a mechanical one, ergo the coumadin. She didn't know and no one in the Doc's office told her about the grapefruit effect beforehand. She ate it, and couldn't figure out why she was getting nosebleeds. I told her and she immediately stopped.
Granted, there might be some people who would never achieve a "happy medium" between grapefruit/meds. But for a lot of people, seems like it would be worth exploring.
eShirl
(18,466 posts)Grapefruits culprit chemical does not interact directly with your pills. Instead, it binds to an enzyme in your intestinal tract known as CYP3A4, which reduces the absorption of certain medications. When grapefruit juice blocks the enzyme, its easier for the medication to pass from your gut to your bloodstream. Blood levels will rise faster and higher than normal, and in some cases the abnormally high levels can be dangerous.
A variety of medications can be boosted by grapefruit juice; the table below lists some of the most important along with related drugs that are less likely to be influenced.
DH's transplant team told him to never, ever have grapefruit or the juice, because it reduces the effectiveness of the immunosupressants he takes to avoid organ rejection. They didn't mention anything about "Seville (sour) oranges and tangelos," as mentioned in the webpage I linked to, but we'll have to add those to the list now I suppose.