Banaba, tsaang gubat vs cancer?

MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino scientist has discovered the potential of two indigenous plants as cure for cancer, the third leading cause of death in the country.

Dr. Gerard Penecilla, a pharmaceutical scientist of the National Research Council of the Philippines, found that banaba (Lagerstroemia speciosa Linn) and tsaang gubat (Carmona retusa Var.) have high potential in fighting growth and multiplication activities of cancer cells.

NRCP is an agency under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

The DOST said Penecilla’s study found that a dosage of 30ug/ml of banaba bark extract is efficient in fighting cancer cells.

“The test further noted that it would take about a dosage of 5ug/ml to be economically feasible for pharmaceutical companies in producing anticancer medicine,” the agency said in a statement.

“Penecilla has recommended more chemical and structure-activity-relationships to reach the said level,” it said.

While for the tsaang gubat, out of the many sample extracts tested, a certain dosage was found effective against cancer cell, the DOST said.

Penecilla’s findings were determined by a laboratory technique called yeast bioassay or microtiter assay, a method used to determine various pharmacologic activities of medicinal plants such as anti-inflammatory, antiviral, etc, the science department said.

“Penecilla used this technique for the first time in determining the anticancer potential of medicinal plants,” DOST said.

It added that the scientist hopes this technique “could pave the way for the strong interaction and cooperation among the Filipino chemists, botanists, biologists, physicians and the government research funding institutions as well, in coming up with solid scientific research on medicinal plants that could aid local pharmaceutical companies to produce anticancer medicine at very low cost.”

“In the end, the health and welfare of the Filipinos will be the beneficiaries of this scientific collaboration,” the DOST said.

Cancer is largely considered a lifestyle-related disease in the country, according to the Department of Health.

In the Philippines, the most common sites of reported deaths from cancer are the trachea, bronchus and lung (8.4 deaths per 100,000 population), breast (4.4 per 100,000) and leukemia (2.9 per 100,000), it said.

Among men, the leading sites are the lungs, prostate, colorectal area and liver, while for women these are the breast, uterus, cervix and lungs.

Among children, the leading cancers are leukemia and lymphoma, the DOH said.