Silver may have role in cancer fight

Silver may have role in cancer fight 

SCIENTISTS in Yorkshire plan to examine using silver to treat cancer.

Drugs containing metals including platinum and copper have already been proved effective treatments but they cause severe side effects.

Silver has a lower toxicity and compounds have been created from it which kill cancer cells in the laboratory.

Now the charity Yorkshire Cancer Research has awarded researchers at Bradford and Leeds universities more than £44,000 to carry out further research in the field.

Roger Phillips, of the Institute of Cancer Therapeutics at Bradford, said: “Silver is inherently well tolerated and doesn’t cause the same level of toxicity to normal tissues as other heavy metals.

“This project will determine how these compounds work and start to address the key issue of whether they are selectively active against cancer cells.”

*Imagine the impact of this research on the supply of silver in the world!