HERBALS IN THE CANCER MANAGEMENT EVOLVING TRENDS

Dr. I. SANJEEVA RAO
Managing Director, Varun Herbals,Pvt. Ltd.
Hyderabad & Consultant to Pharma Industries in Bioactives.

Most of the directive thrust in Cancer Research comes from the efforts put in by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of U.S.A. At present it is estimated that in the United States of America, one person in three will contract cancer, and one person in five will die of Cancer.

Since 1954 the U.S. Federal Government, originally through the Cancer Chemotherapy National Service Center and subsequently through the National Cancer lnstitute (NCI), is being deeply involved in the discovery, biological evaluation, and clinica' testing of anti cancer agents from both synthetic and natural sources.
In addition, a number of major pharmacel1tical companies are conducting research to develop new agents for the treatment of Cancer. This is being done throughout the world. In spite of these efforts, which have led to major improvements in Canter therapy, the levels of incident of Cancer continues to increase.

The early recorded evidences of of Indian, Chinese, Egyptians,Greek Arabic and many other civilizations have tried and used the plant sources for the treatment of Cancer.

Hartwel , in a series of articles in lioydia has reviewed these early Records.

National Cancer Institute throug~ programme surveyed some 35,000 plants and tested for their cvto-toxic activity, typically in the human carcinoma of the nasopharings and mouse lymphyocytic leukemia test systems . in spite of the fact that a number of key compounds came out of this programme none of these have yet impacted the market place , at present some of the plant derived natural products are becoming or attracting the attention of oncologists . they are the bisindole alkaloids drived from catharanthus , vinblastine , vincristine and a semi synthetic derivative Vinblastine, Vindisine and other plant derivatives. Currently Vindisine, Homo-herringtonine, Ipomeanol, Pancratistatin, Phyllanthoside and taxol, etc. The present series of articles in this journal try to highlight some of the natural I?roducts from pl<;Jnt sources that are considered at least as synergisers to the available chemotherapeutic agents in the management of Cancer.

Basically Cancer is like on immature and perverse child, creating a lot of troub17in the home. The life cycle of a cell as programmed ~err death (apoptosis) consists of degeneration & regeneration of a cell. In this cycle at a stage prior to maturation i.e. differentiation, the cell goes into ,?n u(1controlled, unchecked division in its mitotic stage causing a wave of cell multiplication. In a wound also such a phenomena of wave of mitosis occurs in the dedifferentiated cells but it is controlled in a specific manner. The cells continue to multiply until the process of contact inhibition reduces the cell density. That means here the conversion of the cell from its undifferentiated state to a fully differentiated state has taken place. In Ayurveda this phenomenon is called Yadritcha (multiplication and parinama) and differentiated state. There is a control in mechanism- Niyathi. In Cancer the control mechanism is lost and the cells lose the density sensing mechanism. Also it is understood that the generation of tumor must involve some alteration of the structure of DNA. Another idea that tumoregenisity might be determined by epigenetic stage come~ from experiments in which insensitivity to growth control is suppressed or reversed by the process of differentiation. This is one of the evidences for determination oftumoreqenisitv.

This article initiates a continuous process of presenting plants having antitumor effects. To start with ASWAGANDHA WITHANIA SOMNIFERA L., (DUN.) is being presented here, highlighting some of its antitumor effects.