Conclusion
TCM represents the enormous accumulation of daily experiences in medical practice by the Chinese people from ancient time. The description of the therapeutic usage in classic books of Chinese materia medica are informative even today, for example, Angelica sinensis ameliorates menstruation disorder and Artemisia annua is effective against malaria. All these therapeutic effects have been confirmed by contemporary scientific research. Chemical, pharmacological and clinical studies published in recent years have demonstrated that Chinese materia medica and TCM afford a valuable approach for the research and development of new antineoplastic drugs as illustrated by the example of indirubin from Danggui Longhui Wan and irisquinone from Iris latea. It seems that there is a good opportunity to explore chemopreventive agents for cancer as illustrated by red ginseng, Curcuma longa and Recipe “Antitumor B”. The research and development of anti-invasion and anti-metastasis agents for cancer is of critical importance and urgent needs. In addition to Fagopyrum cymosum the continuous search for drugs for the prevention and treatment of cancer metastasis will be the important frontier of cancer research. The application of Chemotaxonomic principle of related species of plants in reference of the experiences of TCM and folk medicine has furnished an alternative approach for the development of new anticancer drugs. The studies of Cephalotaxus hainanensis and Taxus chinensis provide two typical examples in this field.
Similar content being viewed by others
Reference
Han Rui. Highlight on the studies of anticancer drugs derived from plants in China. Stem Cells 1994;12(1):53.
Han Rui, Ji XJ, et al. The antitumor effects and pharmacological action of harringtonine. Chinese Medical J. 1977;3(2):131.
Chou TC, Schmid FA, Philips FS, et al. Uptake, initial effects and chemotherpeutic efficacy of harringtonin in murine leukemic cells sensitive and resistant to vincristin and other chemotherapeutic agents. Cancer Res. 1983;43:3074.
Slichenmyer WJ, Rowinsky EK, Donehower RC, et al. The current status of comptothecin analogues as antitumor agents. J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 1993;85(4):271.
Han R, Jiao L, and Liu HY. Effects of S86019, an active component from Pueralia lobata on cell differentiation and cell cycle traverse of HL-60 cells. Chinese J. Cancer Res. 1990;23:51.
Jing YK, Nakaya K & Han R. Differentiation of promyelocytic leukemia cells HL-60 induced by daidzein in vitro and in vivo. Anticancer Res. 1994;13:1049.
Odashima S, Nakayabu Y, Honjo N, et al. Induction of phenotypic reverse transformation by ginsenosides in cultured Morris hepatoma cells. Europ. J. Cancer 1979;15:885.
Han Rui, Jiao L, Lu Y, et al. Evaluation of N-4(carboxyphenyl) retinamide as a cancer prevention agent and a cancer chemotherapeutic agent. In Vivo 1991;4:153.
Lippman SM, Benner SE & Hong WK. Chemoprevention: Stragtegies for control of cancer. Cancer (suppl.) 1993;72(3):984.
Bollag W & Holdener EE. Retinoids in cancer prevention and therapy. Annual of Oncology 1992;3:513.
Wattenberg LW. Prevention-therapy-Basic sciences and the resolution of the cancer problems: Presidential Address. Cancer Res. 1993;53:5890.
Han R. Highlights of the cancer chemoprevention studies in China. Preventive Medicine 1993;22:712.
Rhee YH, Ahn JH, Choe J, et al. Inhibition of mutagenesis and transformation by Root Extracts of Panax ginseng in vitro. Planta Medica 1991;57:125.
Li X & Wu XG. Effects of ginseng on hepatocellular carcinoma in rats induced by diethylnitrosamine— a further study. Journal of Tonji Medical University 1991;11(2):73.
Yun TK, Yun YS & Han IW. Anticarcinogenic effect of long-term oral administration of red ginseng on newborn mice exposed to various chemical carcinogens. Cancer Detection & Prevention 1983;6:515.
Chen X. G. & Han Rui. Effect of glycyrrhetinic acid on DNA damage and unscheduled DNA synthesis induced by benzopyrene. Chinese Medical Sciences J. 1994;4(1):16.
Chen X.G. & Han Rui. Studies on the cancer chemopreventive activity of 9201 from Rhus chinensis and its mechanism of action. Chinese Medical sciences J. (to be published).
Lin PZ, Chang JS, Cao SG, et al. Second line prevention from esophageal cancer inhibitory therapy to block precancerous lesions. Chinese J. Cancer Res. 1988;1(1):37.
Han R, Liu HY, Saiki I, et al. Studies on anti-invasion and anti-metastatic effect of Fagopyrum cymosum (Trec) Meissn on melamona B16-BL6 cells. Annual Report of Research Institute of Wakan-Yaku, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University. Japan 1995 (to be published).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Han, R. Recent progress of traditional chinese medicine and herbal medicine for the treatment and prevention of cancer. CJIM 1, 242–248 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02940688
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02940688