Phytochemical importance of medicinal plants as potential sources of anticancer agents

Abstract

The diverse and magnificent plant kingdom of the world is widely known for its medicinal importance. The potential medicinal properties of plant species have contributed significantly in the development of various herbal therapies for a number of diseases across the globe. The benefits of herbal medicine over allopathic medicine have helped medicinal plants to regain their importance in the field of health and medicine. Cancer is one of the major health problems that have widely affected the world's population. There is a great need to combat this disease with better and more effective medication as compared to existing therapies. A vast number of medicinal plants are known to have biochemical constituents with anticancer properties. The chemical metabolites of natural origin that possess anticancer properties can serve as potential lead compounds in drug designing. This association of medicinal plants and cancer needs further research and experimentation in order to develop and design anticancer drugs. The present review is an effort to compile information on some of the geographically diverse and important medicinal plants that possess anticancer activity.