Acetaminophen may account for over 50% of all cases of acute liver failure

Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is known to cause liver failure. Researchers from the University of Washington analyzed data on 662 consecutive patients treated for acute liver failure at 22 US care centers between 1998 and 2003. During this time the yearly rate for acute liver failure due to acetaminophen rose from 28 percent of all liver failure cases to 51 percent. Of the 662 acute liver failure cases, 275 were acetaminophen related. 74 people (27%) of the subjects with acetaminophen related liver failure died, 178 survived (65%) and 23 (8%) had liver transplants. in the UK where the amount of Acetaminophen a person can purchase is limited the rate of admissions to hospitals for acute liver failure related to acetaminophen fell by 30%. The problem is there not a great deal of difference between the dosage needed for pain and the dosage which is toxic. The study appears in the December 2005 issue of the journal Hepatology.

Commentary by Jerry Hickey, R.Ph.

At the start of this study the impact of the supplements Green Tea Extract and CLA were not even thought of yet - studies show these both impact weight.

Mayo Clinic doctors find that patients with low grade B-cell leukemia are responding to Green Tea Extracts high in EGCG

Researchers from the Division of Hematology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Mn. Have recently published a paper where especially the Green Tea polyphenol EGCG caused leukemia B-cells from a majority of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) to die in laboratory studies. After publishing the paper, they had 4 patients with low grade B-cell leukemia enter their medical clinic and they found the patients had started Green Tea Extracts high in EGCG on their own. Before starting the EGCG the patients had clinical evidence of worsening leukemia. Soon after starting the extract high in EGCG it was found that in 3 out of 4 of these patients there was clinical evidence that the Green Tea Extract was killing the leukemia cells and their condition was improving. The Mayo Clinic has recently started a Phase I/II study on decaffeinated Green Tea Extract high in EGCG for the treatment of CLL (funded by the NIH). The report is published in the November 30th, 2005 issue of the journal Leukemia Research.