A preliminary clinical study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (August 10, 2009;27(23):3808–3814) examined the effects of epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a polyphenol extracted from green tea, in patients with early-stage chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).
The study enrolled 33 patients, who received EGCG at doses ranging from 400 to 2,000 mg, twice daily, for eight days. Researchers monitored changes in lymphocyte counts and lymph node size.
Approximately one-third of the participants experienced a reduction in lymphocyte count of at least 20%. In addition, most patients with enlarged lymph nodes showed a reduction in lymph node size of 50% or greater during the study period.
As an early-phase, short-duration study without a control group, these findings are exploratory and do not establish clinical efficacy. However, the results suggest that EGCG may have biological activity in CLL, warranting further investigation in larger, controlled trials.
