“When curcumin (turmeric) and piperine (black pepper) were added to breast cells, the number of stem cells decreased without affecting normal cells,” researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Research Center said recently. The study was published online in the Journal of Breast Cancer Research and Therapy. “If we can limit the number of stem cells, we can control the number of cells with tumor-forming potential,” said study lead author Dr. Madhuri Kakarala, a clinical instructor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School and an Ann Arbor, Virginia, health care system study investigator, said in a university news release. The findings that curcumin and pepper target only stem cells but are not toxic to normal breast tissue have important implications for women, the researchers said. “The only preventive drugs currently available to women at high risk of breast cancer are tamoxifen or raloxifene, but most women are not willing to take these drugs because there is too much toxicity,” Kakarala said, adding, “The idea of prevention through certain ingredients in food is very attractive. concept is very attractive, and curcumin and pepper seem to have very low toxicity.” These two food ingredients have been reported in previous cancer-related studies, but mainly regarding their potential cancer therapeutic value. Showing that they have a role in potentially preventing cancer by targeting and controlling stem cells is a first. The discovery was published with the caveat that the results so far have come only from laboratories and not from people. It therefore cautions against any additional addition of curcumin or pepper to the diet as a result.