Authors

Alfredo Serrano Ruiz

Position

Enfermero del Servicio de Farmacología Clínica. Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro de Madrid.

Contact address

Servicio de Farmacología Clínica. Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro. C/ San Martín de Porres, 4. 28035 Madrid.

Contact email: aserrano.hpth@salud.madrid.org

Abstract

The vegetal world has been for approximately over half a century one of the most important sources of molecules with antineoplastic properties. Some of the current treatments have their origin in plants, as it was from these plants that the active ingredient was isolated first from after a staged research process and later approved by the healthcare authorities. In parallel to these examples, every day there are new therapies originated from alternative medicine. Some of these appear to have certain antiproliferative effects in vitro. The concomitant treatment of cytostatics and medicinal herbs can entail risks for the patient´s health. These risks come basically from the interactions with molecules, with an ability to either enhance or diminish the effect of antineoplastic agents. The oncological patient tries to find a solution but not for cancer but to the pain or the secondary effects of chemotherapy in alternative therapies. In this sense, the educational role of the healthcare professional is really important.

Keywords:

oncology; cytostatics; antineoplastic drugs; Medicinal plants; phytotherapypharmacology

Versión en Español

Título:

Hierbas medicinales y cáncer