Therapeutic Applications of Herbal Medicines for Cancer Patients

TLDR

Medicinal herbs and their derivative phytocompounds are increasingly recognized as useful complementary treatments for cancer, with many clinical studies reporting benefits to survival, immune modulation, and quality of life when used with conventional therapies. The authors review clinical studies on herbal medicines for various cancers and the development of randomized controlled trials in this emerging area. They also report on biochemical and cellular mechanisms of herbal medicines in tumor microenvironments and potential use of phytochemicals in cell‑based cancer vaccines. This review should provide useful technological support for evidence‑based application of herbal medicines in cancer therapy.

Abstract

Medicinal herbs and their derivative phytocompounds are being increasingly recognized as useful complementary treatments for cancer. A large volume of clinical studies have reported the beneficial effects of herbal medicines on the survival, immune modulation, and quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients, when these herbal medicines are used in combination with conventional therapeutics. Here, we briefly review some examples of clinical studies that investigated the use of herbal medicines for various cancers and the development of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in this emerging research area. In addition, we also report recent studies on the biochemical and cellular mechanisms of herbal medicines in specific tumor microenvironments and the potential application of specific phytochemicals in cell-based cancer vaccine systems. This review should provide useful technological support for evidence-based application of herbal medicines in cancer therapy.