According to the World Health Organisation
(WHO), Cancer as the second leading cause of death globally has held human
health to ransom. In a quest for a cure, man delves into pharmacognosy where he
discovered phytochemicals which are chemical substances of plant origin that
exerts healing effects.
Cancer is a disease condition characterized
by the dysregulation of growth control mechanisms within a cell, and the role
of phytochemicals as "disciplinarians" in arresting the suddenly
turned cancerous cells has been supported by concrete research evidence.
Phytochemicals had earlier been known to
protect plants against harsh environmental conditions as they cannot move when
they are stressed. Thus their role in supporting man may not be farfetched.
The growing health worries of cancer has
increased worldwide, despite global relentless efforts from scientists which
aimed at decreasing the mortality rate. In 2012 alone, the Global Cancer
statistical study revealed about 8.2 million deaths from cancer.
In a study published in Avicenna Journal of
Phytomedicine in 2015, two researchers from Mashhad University of Medical
Sciences, Iran; used different scientific published evidence from clinical
trials to reveal the anticancer potency of phytochemicals.
The authors have reported that modern
treatment options e.g., radiotherapy, surgical operations and the use of
chemotherapy often evoked strong undesired adverse effects. Thus the strong
need for natural phytochemicals with potent anticancer properties.
The authors stressed that current synthetic
drugs not only attack cancer cells but also exerts stress on normal cells.
Thereby causing cell injury that leads to irreparable cell death. Patients who
take chemotherapeutic drugs may present with impaired hematopoiesis features,
frequent hair loss (alopecia), and cardiovascular diseases. Cancer patients may
even die due to these adverse effects.
To augment for the consequences of
chemotherapy, researchers presented phytochemicals as an alternative saviour.
In their reports, they revealed that plant-based bioactive substances can be
used in the treatment of cancer due to their low side-effects in contrast to
the synthetic cancer-treating drugs e.g., antimetabolites used in chemotherapy.
Research began at the preclinical stage
with the use of phytochemicals as a cancer remedy in experimental animals. With
positive results, further studies and clinical trials affirmed that
phytochemical can beneficially influence the cell growth cycle.
Today, plant-derived compounds such as
vinca alkaloids and podophyllotoxin have gained popularity in the treatment of
cancer patients. These compounds have been found as promising active
ingredients present in most chemotherapies.
In this report, phytochemicals present in
curcumin, Allium sativum (garlic), green tea, Panax ginseng, Viscum album,
camptothecin and resveratrol have been clinically tested in the treatment of a
number of cancers such as colorectal, pancreatic, adenomas, prostate,
oesophageal, uterine, ovarian and lung cancers.
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| Natural foods contain Anti-oxidants that fight against Cancer initiating substances |
They showed that cancer patients who were administered a certain dosage of these therapeutic phytochemicals over a given period of time had increased survival time, improved activity of the natural killer cells decreased the spreading of cancer cells (metastasis) and elevated levels of their immune system.
The researchers uncovered that the
anticancer effects of these phytochemicals were primarily because they had
antioxidant effects; which can reduce the activities of free radicals that
accumulate and cause stress to cells, thereby making them cancerous. Other
mechanisms of action include their ability to inhibit unregulated cell cycle,
initiate programmed cell death (apoptosis) and inhibit the channels through
which cancer cells can get blood supply and nutrients.
Notwithstanding the credence of phytochemicals
nipping cancer to the bud, the authors have suggested that further studies
should be done to help reduce information bias, uncover hidden drug
interactions and possible contraindications. They stated the importance of most
of these reported clinical trials were done with small groups within a short
time-frame.
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