Abstract

A REVIEW ARTICLE ON ROLE OF HERBAL MEDICINE IN TREATMENT OF CANCER

Dr. Md Wasiullah, Piyush Yadav*, Nitesh Maurya and Vinay Kumar Deepak

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Abstract

Herbal medicines have a vital role in the prevention and treatment of cancer. A great deal of pharmaceutical research done in technologically advanced countries like USA, Germany, France, Japan and China has considerably improved quality of the herbal medicines used in the treatment of cancer. With advanced knowledge of molecular science and refinement in isolation & structure elucidation techniques, we are in a much better position to identify various anticancer herbs and develop the remedy that might cure cancer. The therapeutic effect of anticancer herbs is executed by inhibiting canceractivating enzymes, stimulating DNA repair mechanism, promoting production of protective enzymes, inducing antioxidant action and by enhancing activity of the immune cells. herbal medicine is also used in nutrient supplement for anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory activity. Numerous in vitro studies of herbal medicine on different cell lines and in vivo study of herbal medicine have been reported. However, the mechanisms of actions remain unclear. This review aims to give an overview on the recentdevelopment of herbal medicine in the prevention and treatment of cancer. The report covers the possible mechanism of action of some of the herbal medicine. In addition, the common properties of herbal medicine are described. Finally, the study sheds lights on the pharmacological applications of herbal medicine in the treatment of cancer and its potential use as anti-cancer agents.

Keywords: Herbs, cancer, antimetabolites.