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Wild yam creams are often sold as 'natural progesterone' for menopause. The body cannot turn the plant compound diosgenin into progesterone; it is only a raw material that laboratories use to make the hormone. A topical wild yam cream did not relieve menopausal symptoms in a trial, and because the plant has oestrogen-like effects, people with hormone-sensitive cancers should check with their team.
Wild yam root contains diosgenin, which industry has used as a starting material for synthetic progesterone. Memorial Sloan Kettering's About Herbs entry is explicit that there is no evidence the human body can convert diosgenin into progesterone, which undercuts the 'natural progesterone' marketing of many creams. Small studies on menopausal symptoms are mixed: an oral Dioscorea alata formula was more effective than placebo in one study, while a topical Dioscorea villosa cream was ineffective in another, and MSK states that larger studies are needed to confirm any benefit. In preclinical studies diosgenin had oestrogenic and progestogenic effects, and MSK advises people with hormone-sensitive cancers to talk to their physicians before using it. Laboratory antiproliferative effects have not been studied in people with cancer. No adverse reactions or drug interactions are listed on MSK's page, which reflects how little the product has been studied rather than proven safety.
Diosgenin is a plant steroid that can be chemically converted into progesterone in a laboratory, but not by human enzymes; any effect in the body would come from its own weak hormonal activity.
Query for this technology: (TITLE:"Wild yam and 'natural progesterone' creams" OR ABSTRACT:"Wild yam and 'natural progesterone' creams" OR TITLE:"Dioscorea villosa" OR ABSTRACT:"Dioscorea villosa" OR TITLE:"Diosgenin" OR ABSTRACT:"Diosgenin" OR TITLE:"Wild yam cream" OR ABSTRACT:"Wild yam cream") AND (cancer OR tumor OR tumour OR oncology OR carcinoma OR lymphoma OR leukemia OR leukaemia OR myeloma OR sarcoma OR melanoma OR glioma). Results are unfiltered search hits about Wild yam and 'natural progesterone' creams, not a curated reading list.
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Shares Unproven diet claims (alkaline, juice, 'anti-cancer' diets), Dietary supplements during cancer treatment: interactions and harms, Evidence-based integrative oncology, Misinformation and unproven therapies and the tags complementary, supportive-care.
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