But can they cure cancer? There has been a lot of hoopla about lemon’s ability to cure cancer, one viral email claims lemons are, “10,000 times stronger than chemotherapy.” Alas, it’s a myth that gives lemons more superpowers than they've been proven to possess. Some studies have concluded that lemons and their citrus cousins contain naturally occurring substances — mainly modified citrus pectin and limonoids — that may have cancer-fighting properties. The research has found that at very high levels, these compounds are capable of slowing cancer cell growth and inducing cell death in animals and in vitro human breast cancer cultures; but given the parameters of the research, it can’t be concluded that the same is true for humans.