ISLAMABAD: Onion has previously been cited for its health benefits, including lowering risk of certain cancers and helping with depression, but now, a new study has found that a compound found in this pungent vegetable has anti-ovarian cancer effects. After examining the effects of ONA on a preclinical model of EOC in cells, the researchers found that the growth of EOCs slowed down after the team introduced ONA. They also discovered that ONA inhibited pro-tumour activities of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC), which the researchers say are linked with the suppression of the anti-tumour immune response of host lymphocytes. Furthermore, researchers also found that ONA enhanced anti-cancer drugs’ effects by boosting their anti-proliferation ability. In further experiments on an ovarian cancer mouse model, the researchers used oral doses of ONA. Results showed that the mice had longer life spans and showed diminished ovarian cancer tumour development. The researchers say their study demonstrates that ONA slows progression of ovarian cancer tumours by interrupting myeloid cells’ pro-tumour activity. They added: “We found that ONA reduced the extent of ovarian cancer cell proliferation induced by co-culture with human macrophages. In addition, we found that ONA directly suppressed cancer cell proliferation, thus, ONA is considered useful for the additional treatment of patients with ovarian cancer owing to its suppression of the pro-tumour activation of [tumour-associated macrophages] and direct cytotoxicity against cancer cells.” The investigators did not observe side effects in animals, and they say with more testing, an oral ONA supplement could help cancer patients. They concluded their study by noting it is the first to report an anti-ovarian cancer effect of ONA. In a previous study, the same research team found that ONA suppressed the pro-tumour activation of host myeloid cells.