In what appears to be a first of its kind, a study based on Laboratory tests shows that the resveratrol found in the skin and pips of grapes could halt the development of most cases of breast cancer in women.
The Study has been published in the July issue of the Journal Cancer Prevention Research a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
The chemical works by blocking the way that oestrogen combines with DNA in a woman's body to create the cancer. Researchers claim that even low levels of this chemical, the equivalent to that found in a typical glass of red wine, is enough to create the effect.
"We believe that this could stop the whole progression that leads to breast cancer down the road," said Eleanor Rogan, from the University of Nebraska Medical Centre, who was the lead author of the study.
Resveratrol has already been found to have anti-aging properties in various studies. It is one of the "healthy chemicals" found in red wine, called polyphenols.
It is sold in extract form as dietary supplement at most major drug stores.
The current study was conducted in laboratory cultures, and will need to be confirmed in larger human trials, says the scientific report in Science Daily
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