Alternative Medicine Repertory

2. What is the history of the discovery and use of cartilage as a complementary or alternative treatment for cancer? Cartilage from cows (bovine cartilage) and sharks has been studied as a treatment for cancer and other medical conditions for more than 30 years. It was once believed that sharks, whose skeletons are made mostly from cartilage, do not develop cancer. This caused interest in cartilage as a possible treatment for cancer. Although malignant tumors are rare in sharks, cancers have been found in these animals. Early studies used extracts of bovine cartilage. In the 1960s, it was first reported that bovine cartilage decreased inflammation (redness, swelling, pain, and feeling of heat). In the 1970s, it was first reported that bovine cartilage contains a substance that blocks angiogenesis (the forming of new blood vessels). If blood vessel growth into a tumor can be blocked, the tumor will stop growing or shrink. In the 1980s, researchers first described laboratory and animal studies and clinical trials (research studies in people) testing bovine cartilage as a treatment for cancer. Interest in using shark cartilage grew because it was believed that shark cartilage may be more active than bovine cartilage in preventing new blood vessels from being formed. Since a shark's skeleton is made mostly of cartilage, shark cartilage is more plentiful than bovine cartilage. In the 1980s, it was first published that shark cartilage contains a substance that blocks blood vessel growth. In 1998 and 2005, there were published reports of clinical trials of shark cartilage as a treatment for cancer. (See Question 5 for more information about the laboratory and animal studies. See Question 6 for more information about the clinical trials.)

Welcome to REAL LIFE's Shark Cartilage Information Exchange, the first, longest-running and most-copied, Shark Cartilage Information Page on the Internet. Since first publishing this site in October of 1995, we have helped tens of thousands of people obtain information on the potential benefits of Shark Cartilage and newly-developed Shark Cartilage products and technologies. REAL LIFE is dedicated to the proposition that individuals battling chronic or life-threatening degenerative disorders must have access to as much information as possible so they can make informed and intelligent choices when deciding whether nutritional supplements, such as Shark Cartilage , may aid them in obtaining optimum health.

Shark cartilage is a popular dietary supplement that is claimed to combat and/or prevent a variety of illnesses, most notably cancer. It is often marketed under the names Carticin, Cartilade, BeneFin, and Neovastat. The benefits of this supplement have not been scientifically proven, nor has shark cartilage been reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). However, its pervasive use is due to the incorrect notion that sharks do not get cancer. This idea became popular with the best-selling book Sharks Don't Get Cancer by Dr. William Lane, published in 1992. This assertion even appears in the film on sharks at the Monterey Bay Aquarium (although the aquarium does not endorse the use of shark cartilage). Proponents of shark cartilage are encouraged by anecdotal evidence from users as to its efficacy. The proponents also cite studies that show that shark cartilage has had some success in preventing angiogenesis, the growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing vessels. While angiogenesis is often a normal function, it is also consistent with the growth of malignant tumors. They argue too, that very little research (in the quantity and quality of studies) has been conducted, and thus the benefits cannot be scientifically disputed. Opponents cite existing studies of shark cartilage on a variety of cancers that produced negligible to non-existent results in the prevention or treatment of cancer.[1] Most notably was the breast-cancer trial conducted by the Mayo Clinic that stated that the trial "was unable to demonstrate any suggestion of efficacy for this shark cartilage product in patients with advanced cancer." [2] The results of another clinical trial were presented at the 43rd annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology. In that study (sponsored by the National Cancer Institute), "researchers did not find a statistical difference in survival" between patients receiving shark cartilage and those taking a placebo.

Shark cartilage is a popular dietary supplement that is claimed to combat and/or prevent a variety of illnesses, most notably cancer. It is often marketed under the names Carticin, Cartilade, BeneFin, and Neovastat. The benefits of this supplement have not been scientifically proven, nor has shark cartilage been reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). However, its pervasive use is due to the incorrect notion that sharks do not get cancer. This idea became popular with the best-selling book Sharks Don't Get Cancer by Dr. William Lane, published in 1992. This assertion even appears in the film on sharks at the Monterey Bay Aquarium (although the aquarium does not endorse the use of shark cartilage). Proponents of shark cartilage are encouraged by anecdotal evidence from users as to its efficacy. The proponents also cite studies that show that shark cartilage has had some success in preventing angiogenesis, the growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing vessels. While angiogenesis is often a normal function, it is also consistent with the growth of malignant tumors. They argue too, that very little research (in the quantity and quality of studies) has been conducted, and thus the benefits cannot be scientifically disputed. Opponents cite existing studies of shark cartilage on a variety of cancers that produced negligible to non-existent results in the prevention or treatment of cancer.[1] Most notably was the breast-cancer trial conducted by the Mayo Clinic that stated that the trial "was unable to demonstrate any suggestion of efficacy for this shark cartilage product in patients with advanced cancer." [2] The results of another clinical trial were presented at the 43rd annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology. In that study (sponsored by the National Cancer Institute), "researchers did not find a statistical difference in survival" between patients receiving shark cartilage and those taking a placebo.