Frankincense oil killed human bladder cancer cells in laboratory tests, say U.S. researchers.
They tested normal bladder cells and human bladder cancer cells and found that frankincense oil could discriminate between the two types of cells, United Press International reported.
Genetic analysis revealed that frankincense oil suppresses bladder cancer cell growth by stopping cell cycle progression and kills the cancer cells by activating numerous cell death pathways, said researchers at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and Oklahoma City VA Medical Center.
"Frankincense oil may represent an inexpensive alternative therapy for patients currently suffering from bladder cancer," researcher H.K. Lin said in a statement, UPI reported.
The study appears in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine.