In the quest for new treatments, U.S. researchers are looking to traditional Chinese medicines, some of the oldest remedies in the world. <\/p>\n
A recent discovery resulted in a better treatment for a type of leukemia that strikes about 1 in 250,000 people in the U.S. Another study found a potential new painkiller in China's medicine chest. Other researchers are studying a traditional medicinal plant called \"thunder god vine\" for its anti-cancer properties. <\/p>\n
The approach has already had some success. The Chinese herbal medicine artemisinin, for instance, has gone on to become the most potent anti-malarial drug available. <\/p>\n
Not all the leads have panned out, of course. But the old field has shown enough potential to keep interest high. <\/p>\n
A better leukemia treatment drawn from an ancient medicine should give us hope for developing anti-cancer drugs, says Dr. Samuel Waxman, a co-author of the report and professor of medicine and cancer specialist at Mount Sinai Hospital. \"It gives a lot of optimism of seeking other types of cancer medicines in the Chinese pharmacopedia, which many people are looking into,\" Waxman says. <\/p>\n
The treatment uses arsenic trioxide, which has traditionally been used in Chinese medicine. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved arsenic trioxide (sold as Trisenox here) as a treatment in 2000, and later research showed that patients who received standard chemotherapy followed by arsenic trioxide did better than patients who just received standard chemotherapy. <\/p>\n
But a big clinical test recently found that the drug, in combination with all-trans retinoic acid another drug commonly used to treat acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) turned out to be more effective than the usual chemotherapy. <\/p>\n
That results means arsenic trioxide should become the new standard for patients that can use it, says Dr. Richard Stone, director of the adult acute leukemia program at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. <\/p>\n
\"So this was a cure for leukemia without chemotherapy, really for the first time in a large randomized trial,\" says Stone. \"We've got a patient in the hospital right now who's receiving that very therapy.\" <\/p>\n
He says there are still side effects from the new regimen affecting the skin and heart, but for most people they're less of a problem than the hair loss, vomiting and diarrhea that can come with chemotherapy. <\/p>\n
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Western scientists look to Chinese medicine<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In the quest for new treatments, U.S. Continue reading