graviola, pawpaw versus oleander

There is an enormous amount of information on this site – this information supplements the info in my two cancer books – for further details go to www.fightingcancer.com

Oleander or Graviola?

Marc Swanepoel – advocate of oleander therapies believes that all apoptosis therapies are ineffective in late-stage cancer. Here are his comments:

“From my reading of the research, paw-paw, Graviola, Tarceva and many other substances can help with cancer in the beginning stages by promoting the process of apoptosis. They work because they reduce the production of ATP which results, so the theory goes, in the death of fast growing cells that require a lot of ATP – preferably cancer cells.  However, the alternative theory of cancer, that it is a protection mechanism for cells that are under certain stresses, holds that this apoptosis period is relatively short and that the cancer cells have their own ways of overcoming it. Apoptosis requires that the mitochondrial membranes remain permeable to Calcium ions. In cancer cells, these membranes get locked very quickly, especially after the cancer has metastasized. Oleander and NAC, unlike paw-paw, Graviola, etc, act to normalize the levels of glutathione in the body. This, in turn, unlocks the mitochondrial membranes and reverts the mitochondria to normalcy. The assumption is, of course, that the stresses which caused the problems in the first place, are also addressed. Thus the reason for the protocols.

> In summary, my personal take on paw-paw, Graviola, etc is that they are ok for cancer in the early stages but that they should then not be taken with NAC, whey protein, or anything that promotes the levels of glutathione or ATP production in the body. Once cancer has spread, or in the case of very advanced cancer, my opinion is that paw-paw, Graviola and other apoptosis promoting substances based on reduced ATP production, will simply not work.”

To contact Marc Swanepoel about oleander and his products email him at

marcswan@global.co.za