- How It Works
- Purported Uses
- Research Evidence
- Patient Warnings
- Side Effects
- Dosage (Inside MSKCC Only)
Common Name
Sun Soup, selected vegetables, SV
Clinical Summary
Proprietary product that contains water, soybean, shiitake mushroom, mung bean, red date, scallion, garlic, lentil bean, leek, hawthorn fruit, onion, American ginseng, angelica root, licorice, dandelion root, senegal root, ginger, olive, sesame seed, and parsley (1). Sun Soup was developed by a biochemist, Alexander Sun. Patients use this supplement in conjunction with conventional therapies to prevent and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS, promote weight gain, and as an immunostimulant.
Sun Soup exhibits antitumor activity in mouse models (2). Data from small open-label phase I/II studies of SV administered concurrently with conventional therapies for stage III and IV non-small cell lung cancer suggest improvements in survival, Karnofsky Performance Scale Score, and objective tumor regression (1). Larger randomized studies are needed to confirm these findings.
Side effects such as bloatedness and fullness after ingestion have been reported (1).
Purported Uses
- Cancer prevention
- Cancer treatment
- HIV and AIDS
- Immunostimulation
- Weight maintenance
Constituents
Water, soybean, shiitake mushroom, mung bean, red date, scallion, garlic, lentil bean, leek, hawthorn fruit, onion, American ginseng, angelica root, licorice, dandelion root, senegal root, ginger, olive, sesame seed, and parsley (1).
Mechanism of Action
The inventor suggests that the “modest” individual antitumor activities of chemicals in certain ingredients act synergistically (1). Quantitative analysis of freeze-dried powder (DSV) reveals approximately 63 mg inositol hexaphosphate (IP6), 2.6 mg genistein, 4.4 mg daidzein, and 15.5 mg coumestrol per serving (2). In vitro and animal studies performed with IP6 suggest it slows the initiation and/or promotion, inhibits proliferation by chelation of metalloproteins, causes G0/G1 arrest, and induces differentiation of various cancer cell lines. In vitro, genistein inhibits angiogenesis, induces DNA damage in cancer cell lines, and, with daidzein and coumestrol, inhibits the growth of human prostate cancer cell lines (3). Genistein and coumestrol have been shown to induce NADPH:quinone reductase (QR), a detoxifying phase II enzyme, in colonic cells, leading to possible antitumor effects (4). Shiitake mushrooms contain lentinan, a polysaccharide, which may act as an immunomodulator and enhance production of IL-1, TNF, LAK activity, cytotoxic T lymphocytes, and cytotoxic peritoneal exudate cells. A mouse tumor model showed that mice fed shiitake extract, mung bean extract, or both exhibited tumor inhibition of 60%, 53%, and 82%, respectively, as compared to the control group after 22 days.
Pharmacokinetics
No formal pharmacokinetics studies have been performed on Sun Soup.
Adverse Reactions
Common: GI fullness or bloatedness after ingestion. (1)
Herb-Drug Interactions
Although no drug interactions have been reported, several ingredients of Sun Soup can interact with prescription drugs (please see the following monographs):
Lentinan
Hawthorn fruit
Ginger
Licorice
Soy
American ginseng
Literature Summary and Critique
Sun AS, et al. Phase I/II study of stage III and IV non-small cell lung cancer patients taking a specific dietary supplement. Nutrition and Cancer 1999;34:62-9.
A small, open-label phase I/II study conducted in the Czech Republic evaluating the effect of 30 g daily Sun Farm soup freeze-dried powder (DSV) on the survival of patients also utilizing conventional therapies. Stage III and IV NSCLC patients in the treatment group (n=6) chose to receive daily DSV supplementation for 4-17 months and were compared to a control group of similar patients (n=13). Although demographics (age, BMI, KPS) are reported to be similar between treatment groups, the authors do not describe previous or current oncologic treatments utilized. Primary endpoint was death or survival measured up to 24 months from date of entry. KPS improved in those receiving DSV (75 ± 8 to 80 ± 13) and declined in control patients (79 ± 8 to 55 ± 11) one to three months after entry. Weight change in the control, treatment, and toxicity study patients was -12 ± 5%, -2 ± 2%, and +4 ± 4%, respectively. Median and mean survival was 4 and 4.8 months in control patients and 15.5 and 15 months in treatment patients (p<0.01). Duration of DSV treatment varied between patients; most patients failed to ingest DSV for the intended period because of lack of motivation, monotony of the diet, and taste preference. No toxicity resulted from chronic administration (17-24 months) in a subset of Stage I NSCLC patients (n=5). Although the author reports improved survival in patients taking Sun Farm soup, additional large, randomized, controlled studies are required.
Sun AS, et al. Pilot study of a specific dietary supplement in tumor-bearing mice and in stage IIIB and IV non-small cell lung cancer patients. Nutrition and Cancer 2001;39:85-95.
A small open-enrollment trial evaluating the survival of 18 volunteer stage IIIB and IV NSCLC patients consuming 283 g daily thawed selected vegetables (FSV) alone or as an adjuvant to conventional therapy, compared to historical controls. A murine lung tumor model was used to evaluate tumor inhibition activity. Mice receiving 5% DSV had 53-74% tumor inhibition by day 23 compared to control. The mean and median survival times of eligible NSCLC patients using FSV were 23.7 and 33.5 months, respectively - significantly greater than the historical mean survival time of 7 months. One-year survival of FSV patients was 71%. Ten of the thirteen patients receiving conventional treatment with FSV had no new sites of metastasis. Using FSV alone, two patients had objective regression of lung lesions and stability of other lesions for 39 and 29 months. The average KPS of all eligible patients increased from 55 ± 13 to 92 ± 9 (p<0.05). Four patients were unable to ingest FSV at full dosage or for more than 2 months and exhibited normal mean survival time within the historical range (3-10 months). Types of previous and concurrent oncological treatments were not specified. A possible source of bias is the self-selection of highly motivated patients who sought new treatments after failing to benefit from conventional therapies, but this alone would not likely result in a 3-fold increase in survival time. This study represents more of a case report series than a clinical trial, but points to the need for a larger, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, which is now in progress.
References
- Sun AS, et al. Phase I/II study of stage III and IV non-small cell lung cancer patients taking a specific dietary supplement. Nutr Cancer 1999;34:62-9.
- Sun AS, et al. Pilot study of a specific dietary supplement in tumor-bearing mice and in stage IIIB and IV non-small cell lung cancer patients. Nutr Cancer 2001;39:85-95.
- Mitchell JH, Duthie SJ, Collins AR. Effects of phytoestrogens on growth and DNA integrity in human prostate tumor cell lines: PC-3 and LNCaP. Nutr Cancer 2000;38:223-8.
- Wang W, et al. Induction of NADPH:quinone reductase by dietary phytoestrogens in colonic Colo205 cells. Biochem Pharmacol 1998;56:189-95.
- Sun Farms Corporation Web site. http://www.sunfarmcorp.com/index.htm. Accessed September 26, 2011.
How It Works
Bottom Line: Sun Farms Vegetable Soup has not been shown to treat or prevent cancer.
Sun Farms Vegetable Soup contains soybean, shiitake mushroom, mung bean, red date, scallion, garlic, lentil bean, leek, hawthorn fruit, onion, American ginseng, angelica root, licorice, dandelion root, senegal root, ginger, olive, sesame seed, and parsley. Scientists are unsure of exactly how it works because only a few laboratory studies have tested it. In mice taking dried Sun Soup powder, tumor growth was slowed by 53-74% compared to mice not taking the powder. Laboratory tests show that Sun Soup contains inositol hexaphosphate (IP6), a compound that slows that formation and growth of cancer cells in laboratory and animals studies. Sun Soup also contains genistein, daidzein, and coumestrol, which are phytoestrogens (also called isoflavones) found in soybeans. In the laboratory, genistein slows the growth of blood vessels that feed tumors, damages the DNA of cancer cell lines, and, along with daidzein and coumestrol, inhibits the growth of prostate cancer cells. Shiitake mushrooms contain lentinan, which may stimulate the immune system. A study in mice found that shiitake extract and mung bean extract slowed the growth of tumors. However, despite all of these anti-cancer activities in the laboratory setting, it is still not known whether Sun Soup will have an anti-tumor effect in the human body.
Purported Uses
- To prevent and treat cancer
Small pilot studies show that Sun Soup may increase survival in late-stage non-small cell lung cancer patients, but its use in treatment or prevention of other cancers has not been studied. It is still too early to tell if Sun Soup is an effective cancer treatment in combination with chemo- and radiation therapy. - To treat HIV and AIDS
No scientific evidence supports this use. A clinical trial of Sun Soup in HIV patients is underway. - To stimulate the immune system
Although some laboratory studies show that the chemicals found in Sun Soup stimulate certain aspects of the immune system, it is not known if this effect occurs in the human body. This use has not been tested in clinical trials. - To maintain the weight lost with diseases like cancer and HIV/AIDS
A small pilot study in late-stage non-small cell lung cancer patients supports this use.
Research Evidence
Cancer treatment:
Six patients with stage III and IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) volunteered to take 30 g of Sun Farm soup freeze-dried powder daily in conjunction with chemotherapy and/or radiation. Patients took the powder for 4-17 months and were compared to 13 similar patients not taking the powder. After one to three months, Karnofsky Performance Score, a measure of patients’ ability to perform ordinary tasks, increased in the group taking Sun Soup powder but decreased in the comparison group. Patients taking Sun Soup also lost less weight and had a longer average survival time (15 months compared to 4.8 months) than the control group. However, the researchers did not describe previous or current cancer treatments used by the patients, which can have a significant effect on their relative survival. Because this is such a small study, it is difficult to say whether these effects would occur in the general population, or whether they were due to chance.
A second trial with 18 volunteer stage IIIB and IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients was performed using thawed Sun Soup. Patients took 283 g of the soup daily alone or in combination with chemo- and/or radiation therapy. The average survival time of patients taking Sun Soup was 23.7 months, three times higher than the typical average survival time late-stage NSCLC patients (7 months). 71% of patients taking Sun Soup lived for at least one year from the start of the study. Using Sun Soup alone, two patients had shrinking of lung tumors and stability of other tumors for 39 and 29 months. The average Karnofsky Performance Score for Sun Soup patients increased significantly. Again, the types of previous and current cancer treatments were not described. This study also suffers from too small a size, so larger clinical trials are needed.
Patient Warnings
This product is regulated by the FDA as a dietary supplement. Unlike approved drugs, supplements are not required to be manufactured under specific standardized conditions. This product may not contain the labeled amount or may be contaminated. In addition, it may not have been tested for safety or effectiveness.
Side Effects
Sun Soup can cause gastrointestinal fullness or bloating.
Dosage (Inside MSKCC Only)
This field is only visible to only Inside MSKCC users.
Aliases
Sun Soup
Last updated: September 26, 2011
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