Alternative Cancer Treatment: Scientific Exploration of Herbs

Common modes of conventional cancer therapy

Cancer is a debilitating disease that tends to affect the entire body. Yet, modern physicians treat it as a local disease. They believe they can cure the disease by using tumor specific drugs, by irradiation or by simply extracting the tumor.  The common modes of conventional therapy include:

Surgery: In this oldest method of cancer treatment, the malignant tumor along with the adjoining tissue and lymph nodes is extracted.

Radiotherapy: High energy particles or waves like x-rays and gamma rays are used to kill the cancerous cells in this mode of therapy.

Chemotherapy: Anti cancer medicines are injected into the bloodstream of the patient and spread in the entire body to damage the cancer cells. It is effective in tumors that have metastasized.

Hormone Therapy: It is useful in cancers that are hormone dependant for their growth. Here, either the hormone production of the specific gland is modified using different medicines or the hormone producing gland is surgically removed.

Immunotherapy: It is used to boost the immune system of the body to resist the growth of the cancer cells.

The above mentioned methods are either used in isolation or one or more forms of therapies may be used in tandem depending upon the stage of the cancer and patient’s profile. However, the patient’s entire body takes a beating in this whole process. But more often than not, despite this aggressive treatment, the cancer still remains in the body and may even metastasize to distant organs.

The focus of many alternative forms of cancer therapies is to work upon the body’s natural immunity and ability to take on the disease and destroy cancer cells. Many doctors and researchers are turning back to nature in search of other means to fight against cancer. Many studies have shown that herbs are an effective means of curing the cancer naturally besides boosting the patient’s immune system. The aim of herbal treatment of cancer is to maintain the body in an alkaline state with high levels of enzymes and antioxidants so as to eliminate all toxins from the body and to detoxify it. Herbs are useful to fight against the harmful cancer causing free radicals.

Commonly used herbs in cancer treatment 

Some of the commonly used herbs in cancer treatment are

• Garlic: It is a potent herb with anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-parasitical and anti-fungal properties. Eating 8-10 cloves of garlic per day is said t be anti-cancerous as well.
• Parsley: It has apigenin which prevents angiogenesis and ultimately stifles the cancer cells.
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  Chapparal: Found in the deserts of Mojave, it is a potent anti-cancer herb. It is very effective in flushing out toxins from the liver and is a powerful liver stimulant.
• Red clover: The purple blossoms of red clover have isoflavones called ‘genistein’ and ‘daidzein’ which have strong anti cancer properties, especially against hormone dependant cancers like breast and prostate cancer. It prevents angiogenesis or development of blood vessels which nourish the tumor. It also has antioxidants like vitamin E and tocopherol. It can be used in tea, tincture or poultice form.
  
• Echinacea: It is a powerful herb with a potent immune-boosting effect. It is recommended for a minimum of six months.
• Green tea: Basically found in China, green tea has powerful antioxidants called ‘polyphenols’, a type of bioflavonoids. It also contains carotenoids, proanthocyanidins and theanine. It is particularly useful in cancers of breast, stomach, liver, skin, lung, intestines and colon.
• Oldenlandia: It is an herb commonly found in China. It is said to stop tumor growth and is particularly effective against colon, stomach and esophageal cancers. It is taken in tea, as a pill or as a tincture.
• Cleavers: It is basically used for cancers that have metastasized to the lymph nodes as it is very effective in reducing the tumors and shrinking the lymphatic drainage. It can be added to the soups in raw form or be consumed as a tonic.
• Graviola: Found in the forests of Amazon, it is used to eliminate cancer cells in lung, pancreatic, breast, prostate and colon cancers. It also possesses strong immune boosting properties and improves the body’s defense mechanisms.
• Essiac: Made as a concoction of burdock root, slippery elm, sheep sorrel and Indian rhubarb, it has long been used in Canada as an anti- cancer treatment because of its antioxidant property and its ability to inhibit the growth of tumor cells.
• Poke root: It is a very strong anti-cancer herb and is used to burn away external tumors like breast cancer. Preparations of poke root are also taken to eliminate the toxins out of the lymphatic system. It is used for its detoxifying properties.
• Extract of sapium sebiferum: The milky extract of the herb is applied externally on cancerous lesions to melt them away.
• Artemisia annua: Mainly used in the treatment of breast cancer, it is highly specific against the cancer cells.
• Root of tragia involucrata: It is basically used to combat the severe pain associated with cancer.
• Mistletoe: It consists of two groups of toxins- a) viscotoxins, which kill the tumor cells by their cytolytic action, and b) lectins, which prevent the further growth of the tumor cells by their cytostatic action.
  
• Rosemary: It contains terpenes fatty acids which inhibit the formation of new tumor cells.
• Turmeric: A daily consumption of ½ teaspoon of turmeric is said to prevent mutations in the cellular DNA, thus preventing the formation of cancerous cells.
• Thyme: It is said to be particularly effective against oral cancers.
• Barley green: It is not only effective against the existing cancer but is also beneficial in protecting the body against the growth of any new tumor. It exerts its antioxidant properties because of vitamin A and C, iron, folic acid and chlorophyll that it contains.

Herb treatment against cancer employed by the Chinese is also garnering much interest these days. It is based on the principle of “Fu Zheng Gu Ben” where “Fu Zheng” means strengthening what is correct and “Gu Ben” means regeneration and repair. Herbs are used to attack the accumulated cancer cells, to boost the immune system of the body and to remove the cause of the cancer from the body. Commonly used Chinese herbs in the treatment of cancer include Dong ling cao, Yi yi ren, Tu fu ling, Ling zhi and Ren shen.

Herb treatment is an effective means of treatment against cancer as it does not produce the harmful side effects of the conventional medicines besides being easy on the pockets. However, before starting with this form of treatment, it is always a good idea to discuss it with the primary physician as some of the herbs may interfere with the other medicines.