Peony flowers may ease ill-effects of chemotherapy
August 19th, 2010 - 5:02 pm ICT by IANSLondon, Aug 19 (IANS) A perennial favourite of gardeners, peony flowers may soon help ease chemotherapy’s side effects like nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, stomach cramps and weight loss.
Given in combination with three other plants, it also cuts tumour growth, suggests a new research from the Yale School of Medicine, US, the Daily Mail reported.
Chemotherapy works by killing cells that grow and divide abnormally fast, a characteristic of cancers, according to the journal Science Translational Medicine.
The research hinges on Chinese traditional medicine put into drug form.
Known as PHY906, the drug is made up of four plants: the peony, liquorice, extracts of date and the skullcap plant.
The drug, when administered to mice undergoing treatment for bowel cancer, shrank their tumours more quickly nor did they lose weight.
“This combination of chemotherapy and herbs represents a marriage of Western and Eastern approaches to the treatment of cancer,” researcher Yung-Chi Cheng said.
He added that use of the drug in cancer patients is still preliminary and people should not try to source their own online.
- Ancient Chinese herbal recipe eases chemo's side effects - Aug 19, 2010
- Novel anti-shingles agent developed - Apr 22, 2011
- Electric shocks soften up cancer cells for treatment - Dec 07, 2010
- Golden bullet to kill stubborn cancer cells - Oct 28, 2010
- Breakthrough can reduce heart failure in cancer patients - Feb 10, 2011
- New way of treating lung cancer soon - Oct 11, 2011
- Drug discovery combats ovarian cancer - Jun 05, 2011
- Combo therapy may overcome Herceptin-resistant breast cancer - Mar 14, 2011
- Indian-origin scientist's finding offers hope for advanced cancer patients - Apr 06, 2011
- New cancer drug may end chemo misery - Oct 10, 2010
- New approach to fight treatment-resistant colon cancer - Dec 09, 2009
- 'Gold bullet' to kill breast cancer cells on the anvil - Oct 28, 2010
- Single gene mutation can cause endometrial cancer - Feb 10, 2010
- Scientists develop novel tumour busting technique - Dec 07, 2011
- Scientists identify four anti-cancer compounds - Nov 30, 2011
Tags: bowel cancer, cancer patients, cancer researcher, chemotherapy works, chi cheng, chinese traditional medicine, daily mail, diarrhoea, eastern approaches, ill effects, journal science, liquorice, nausea vomiting, peony flowers, skullcap plant, stomach cramps, translational medicine, treatment of cancer, undergoing treatment, yale school of medicine