Plants Used for the Traditional Management of Cancer in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa: A Review of Ethnobotanical Surveys, Ethnopharmacological Studies and Active Phytochemicals

• Published in: Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2021-07, Vol.26 (15), p.4639
• Main Authors: Sagbo, Idowu Jonas, Otang-Mbeng, Wilfred
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antibiotics; anticancer drugs; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic - chemistry; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic - isolation & purification; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic - therapeutic use; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols - adverse effects; Apoptosis; Bone marrow; Brain cancer; Breast cancer; Cancer; Cancer therapies; Cell cycle; Cell division; Cell growth; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation - drug effects; Chemotherapy; Cytotoxicity; Developing countries; Drug development; Drugs; Eastern Cape; Enzymes; Ethnobotany; Ethnobotany - methods; Ethnopharmacology - methods; Genes; Herbal medicine; Humans; LDCs; Lung cancer; Medicinal plants; Metabolites; Mutation; Neoplasms - drug therapy; Neoplasms - epidemiology; Neoplasms - pathology; Phytochemicals; Phytochemicals - chemistry; Phytochemicals - isolation & purification; Phytochemicals - therapeutic use; Phytotherapy - methods; Plant Extracts - chemistry; Plant species; Plants, Medicinal; Polls & surveys; Prostate; Public health; Review; Reviews; Side effects; South Africa; South Africa - epidemiology; Surveys and Questionnaires
• ISSN: 1420-3049; 1420-3049
• DOI: 10.3390/molecules26154639

Cancer occurrence is rapidly increasing all over the world, including in developing countries. The current trend in cancer management requires the use of herbal remedies since the majority of anticancer drugs are known to be costly, with unwanted side effects. In the Eastern Cape province, the use of medicinal plants for cancer management has been climbing steadily over the past two decades due to their cultural belief, low cost, efficacy, and safety claims. With the aim of identifying some potential anticancer plants for probable drug development, this study was undertaken to review plants reported by ethnobotanical surveys in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa for the traditional management of cancer. Information regarding plants used for cancer management in the Eastern Cape province was obtained from multidisciplinary databases and ethnobotanical books. About 24 plant species belonging to twenty families have been reported to be used for the traditional management of cancer in the Eastern Cape province. Among the anticancer plant species, only 16 species have been explored scientifically for their anticancer activities. This review authenticated the use of anticancer plant species in the Eastern Cape province and, therefore, identified several promising unexplored species for further scientific evaluation.