title: Prevention of surgery-induced suppression of granulocyte function by intravenous application of a fermented extract from Viscum album L. in breast cancer patients.
abstract: Surgical stress and anaesthetics are able to suppress the immune system. This may accelerate the growth and metastasis of residual cancer cells. As Viscum album L. extracts (VA-E) are known to exert both effects, immunomodulating and apoptosis-inducing properties, a Good-Clinical-Practice-guided, prospective bi-centric phase II study was conducted to measure the influence of a perioperative intravenous application of a VA-E on granulocyte function. In 98 patients with breast cancer, it was shown that a single intravenous application of the standardized VA-E "Iscador M special" in a final concentration of 1 mg/individual prior to surgery prevented the surgery-associated inhibition of the oxidative burst. As no VA-E-related side-effects were observed, this distinct route of application may be a rationale to restrict immunosuppression by surgical stress and anaesthesia.
authors.affiliation: Krebsforschung Herdecke, Department of Applied Immunology, University Witten/Herdecke, Germany. Arndt.Buessing@uni-wh.de
authors.forename: Arndt
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Büssing
authors.forename: Mechtild
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bischof
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hatzmann
authors.forename: Felix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bartsch
authors.forename: Danyl
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Soto-Vera
authors.forename: Eva-Maria
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Fronk
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gmeindl
authors.forename: Gerburg M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000601:surgery*; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006098:Granulocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008875:Middle Aged; D019990:Perioperative Care; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000097:blood* / Q000517:prevention & control; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016897:Respiratory Burst
chemical_list: D010936:Plant Extracts; D010940:Plant Proteins; D002097:C-Reactive Protein; C077177:viscum album peptide