Plant-based anticancer medicine is based on ancient herbal medicine. The major civilizations in the pre-Christian era were Egypt, Greece, India, and China. Modern medicine emerged in the 19th century, and further advancements in treatments occurred in the 20th century.
European ancient herbal tradition serves as the foundation of modern medicine. We find references to herbal medicine in Homer’s epics, the Illiad and The Odysseys, c. 800 BC. Sixty-three Minoan, Mycenaean, and Egyptian Assyrian pharmacotherapy plant species are mentioned. Elecampane (Inula helenium) and Artemisia are promising references. Hippocrates (459 – 379 BC) writings contain 300 medicinal plants such as wormwood, common centaury (Centaurium umbellatum), garlic, opium, henbane, deadly nightshade, mandrake, fragrant hellebore, haselwort, sea onion, celery, parsley, asparagus, oak and pomegranate.
With the discovery of America, new plants were added to the global medicinal knowledge base: Cinchona, Ipecacuanha, Cacao, Ratanhia, Labelia, Jalapa, Podophyllum, Senega, Vanilla, Mate, tobacco, and red pepper, among others. The early 19th-century discovery, substantiation, and isolation of poppy, ipecacuanha, Strychnos, quinine, pomegranate, and other plants, as well as the isolation of glycosides, marked the beginning of scientific pharmacy. Tannins, saponins, essential oils, vitamins, and hormones are some of the active substances found in medicinal plants. Therapeutics, alkaloids, and glycosides isolated from pure form supplanted the drugs from which they were isolated. The manufacturing, laboratory testing, experimentation, and cultivation of medicinal plants took root in the 20th century. Petrovska B B (2012)
Combretastatin – an example of plant-based anticancer medicine
The South African bush willow tree is the source of the combretastatin molecule, which has anticancer properties. The US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency have approved two combretastatin molecules for treating thyroid, ovarian, neuroendocrine, enteric, and glioma cancers. (Patel, V K et al., 2024)
Combretum caffrum is a tree species native to the Combretaceae family, found in South Africa. Its bark contains combretastatin. The plant is used in traditional medicine.
Combretastatin A-4 (CA-4), isolated from the South African tree Combretum caffrum, is one of the most potent antimitotic agents. CA-4 shows strong cytotoxicity against various cancer cells, including multi-drug-resistant cancer cell lines. (Nam, N H (2003); Cirla A. et al., 2003)
The medication received orphan drug status from the US FDA in 2006. Orphan drugs affect rare conditions affecting fewer than 200,000 people. US research grants support orphan drug status, which permits using this medication for specified rare conditions. General approval is accorded after clinical, safety, and efficacy trials.
Advanced clinical trials to treat thyroid cancer in combination with paclitaxel and carboplatin are underway. Some combretastatin derivatives are currently in Phase III clinical trials in combination with chemotherapy treatment for various tumors.
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