This review covers the most recent literature to summarize structural categories and molecular anticancer mechanisms of phenolic compounds from medicinal herbs and dietary plants. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This research was supported by grants from the University of Hong Kong (Seed Funding for Basic Research). We are grateful to Dr.

Related Articles Bestselling books perpetuate the myth that natural products such as herbs and other “dietary supplements” tend to be safer than conventional medicines.1 Once relegated to health food stores, these products now fill pharmacy and supermarket shelves. Fueled by congressional passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994,2 which deregulated the industry by limiting the role of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the popularity of dietary supplements has created a $15-billion-a-year industry.In this issue of the Journal, Nortier et al. present evidence of an association between the use . . . David A.

WHO has predicted that number of cancer new cases will reach 15 milion until 2020.4 Common Treatment Methods of Cancer Surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are considered as the most common methods of cancer treatment, although all of these treatment methods are not always useful and the clinical results are not acceptable.5 Limitations of Modern Treatment Methods Although chemotherapy and radiotherapy are highly effective methods of cancer treatment, these methods exert severe side effects in use.6 One of the main problems in cancer treatment is gradual resistance of cancer cells against treatment.7 Hence, achieving a new approach is one of the aims of immuno pharmacological studies to improve cancer treatment results.8 From 1980 to 2000, following Aristotle and Jalinos doctrine, indicating cancer as a result of black bile coagulation, up to now during which with the advent of new treatment methods, cancer mortalities has been reduced for 25%, plants have played an important role in controlling cancer symptoms and treatments.4 Herbal Drugs Herbal drugs include plants, herbal complexes and herbal products or plant or even a combination of plants which were used thousand years before inventing modern drugs. On the other hand, it blocks NF-KB signaling pathway through controlling IKB enzyme phosphorylation, which finally induces apoptosis in cancer cells.29 ,30 Why people use Herbal Medicines Herbal medicines are being used by 75-80% of world population especially those living in developing countries.19 It has been reported that most plants and plant extracts are used as prescribed medicines in France and Germany.15 The number of medicals tending to use such herbal medicines is increasing.31 those suffering from cancer are inclined to use herbal medicine due to hope to cure, disease improvement, preventing disease to convert to metastatic form, supporting immunity system, reducing stress, and relaxation32 Furthermore, the main aims of using herbal medicine in Cancer treatment are: Primary prevention of cancer through creating an unfavorable environment for growth of cancer cells, Prevention of a recurrence of cancer, Increasing body's immune system, and reducing side effects resulting from using modern treatment methods including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.4 ,21 Difference of herbal drugs and chemical drugs: In spite of similarities, there are some important differences between modern and herbal medicines.

The authors performed a literature review to assess which herbal approaches have had associated cancer case reports and determine which of these have been studied in prospective research. A population-based study conducted by Gansler et al. in the United States found that the complementary methods (CM) most frequently reported used by cancer survivors were prayer/spiritual practice (61.4%), relaxation (44.3%), faith/spiritual healing (42.4%), nutritional supplements/vitamins (40.1%), meditation (15%), religious counselling (11.3%), massage (11.2%), and support groups (9.7%).1 A multinational survey found that 35.9% of cancer patients were either past or present users of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Herbal medicines were by far the most commonly used group of treatments, escalating in use from 5.3% before the diagnosis of cancer to 13.9% after the diagnosis of cancer.2 Many individuals use certain CAM approaches with expectation or hope for therapeutic effects on the tumour which might improve their survival.3 Herbal remedies are believed by the general public to be safe, cause less side-effects and less likely to cause dependency.4 Relatively little English language clinical research literature about the use of CAM approaches in cancer has addressed studies of anticancer treatments.

The intervention groups of three studies were compared to a chemotherapy alone control group, the fourth study compared the decoction of Huangqi compounds with two other Chinese herbal interventions. None of the studies reported on primary outcome using Common Toxicity Criteria (CTC). There was a significant reduction in the proportion of patients who experienced nausea & vomiting when decoctions of Huangqi compounds were given in addition to chemotherapy.

This review aims to give an overview on the recent development of herbal medicine in the prevention and treatment of cancer. 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.

For a long time, natural and herbal products have been considered as precise sources of treatment used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of diseases including infections and malignant diseases [3 ]. Several researches demonstrated the fact that extracts from a number of herbal plants exhibit anticancer activities both in vitro and in vivo [4 -10 ]. A growing number of studies indicate that herbal medicine (looking at frequency, type and reasons for use) might have the anti-cancer effect by enhancing the immune system [11 ], inducing cell differentiation [12 ], inhibiting telomerase activities [13 ] and inducing apoptosis of cancer cells [14 ]. It is strongly believed that herbal medicines are natural and hence without significant side effects and less likely to cause dependency [15 ]. Nevertheless, many herbs can be toxic especially in higher quantities and with frequent use. Besides, herb-synthetic drug interactions are controversial [16 ]. The prevalence of herbs use ranges from 60 to 80% among cancer patients depending on the definition of herbal medicine used in each study, sample size, and the place where the study was conducted [17 ]. In UK, a population-based survey indicates that about 25% of cancer patients had consulted an herbal medicine practitioner in the past, although authors suggest that this number maybe underestimated [18 ]. A Canadian study shows that 20% of breast cancer patients used at least one herbal medicine treatment in the past[19 ], whereas American studies more consistently report rates well above 65% [20 ,21 ], such rates are considerably higher than those reported in general population [22 ] or among other cancer diagnostic groups [23 ]. Despite extensive use of herbal medicines in cancer care, most of the evidence is anecdotal and has not been properly studied with significant clinical trials, especially in human subjects [24 ]. Further, interaction of chemical drug-herbs should be considered as another important factor [25 ], because herbs cannot replace surgery or radiotherapy for early stages of cancer, even though it is believed that they do have merits of their own [26 ]. The objective of this review is to identify the available evidence on the use of herbs and their clinical effects in cancer care.

This has also been the case in Palestine.4 Many patients with cancer use CAM either concurrently with conventional medicine (complementary) or on their own (alternative).5 A systematic review of 26 surveys in 13 countries estimated the average prevalence of CAM use by cancer patients as 31.4% (range 7–64%).6 However, it has been suggested that the prevalence of CAM therapies across this group of patients could be as high as 70–80%.7, 8, 9 In Jordan,5 Israel,10 and Turkey11, 12 CAM usage in cancer patients has been reported to be up to 50%. According to two recent systematic reviews carried out by Ben-Arye et al. (2011) and Olaku & White (2011), traditional herbal medicine is the leading CAM modality in Middle Eastern countries and USA. The use of herbal medicines for cancer is both widespread and diverse worldwide.5, 15 When concurrently used with pharmaceutical drugs, interactions may increase or decrease the pharmaceutical or toxicological effects of either components.16, 17, 18, 19 A potential risk to human health could be the simultaneous use of multiple herbal medicines and conventional medicines.20 Section snippets Aims and objectives The present study sought to evaluate the prevalence and factors related to the use of herbs by patients living with cancer, to discuss the demographic details of these patients and to identify perceived benefits from herbal therapy use.

See more on using PICO in the Cochrane Handbook . Chinese medicinal herbs for the treatment of side‐effects from chemotherapy in breast cancer patients Chinese medicinal herbs (CMH) include any mixture of herbal compounds and decoction (the process by which herbs are boiled and remaining liquid used for health purposes), including the development of herbal formulae and injections, and capsules. Although CMH are used to counteract the side effects of chemotherapy (cancer treatment with chemical agents that are selectively destructive to malignant cells and tissues) in patients being treated for cancer, the evidence for their use for women with breast cancer has not been ascertained.

Malignant tumours (Tridosaja ) are very harmful because all the three major bodily systems lose mutual coordination and thus cannot prevent tissue damage, resulting in a deadly morbid condition [12]. Ayurvedic classification of neoplasm depends on various clinical symptoms in relation to Tridoshas .Group I: Diseases that can be named as clear malignancy, which includes arbuda and granthi , e.g. mamsarbuda (melanoma) and raktarbuda (leukaemia), mukharbuda (oral cancer), etc. Medo aggravating factors : excessive intake of oily foods, sweets, alcohol and lazy attitude [11], [12]. According to Ayurvedic principles, the disease cannot be named on its own because it differs between persons in terms of illness, clinical presentation and also the treatment required [14]. Thus, pathogenesis in Ayurveda is explained on the basis of Tridoshas . Agni or Pitta , which is present in each and every cell, is responsible for digestion and metabolism in human body.