Literature Review on Cancer Management in the Aspect of Ayurveda, Indigenous and Siddha Medicine

Cancer is the second commonest non-communicable disease causing 14% of mortality being the second leading cause of mortality globally. At present in Sri Lanka also malignancy is the second foremost cause of death. According to statistics, the number of cancer patients annually increases in Sri Lanka causing a burden to the National Health system. As the country is having different medical systems other than Allopathic medicine, such as Ayurveda, Sri Lankan Traditional and Siddha medicine, there is an increased urge among the patients and Health professionals both to seek Cancer treatments from any of the medical systems available. Those have different explanations for malignancy and its treatments. Cancer can be resembled with Arbuda in Ayurveda, Pilika in Traditional and Vippuruthi in Siddha Medicine.

Even though research studies have demonstrated that significant improvement could be achieved by utilizing chemotherapy along with herbal medicine, there is a lack of scientific evidence on herbal medicines which could be used in cancer treatment. At present there is no specific treatment to alleviate cancer completely in any of the medical systems.

When considering Ayurveda, Siddha and Traditional medicine, there is a vast literature on numerous plants and formulations consist of herbal and

herbo-mineral ingredients used in cancer management. Therefore, when it comes to treatment it is difficult to identify an effective but feasible formulation for cancer. Hence this literature study aimed at compiling commonly used feasible recipes for cancer management based on limited references but which were obtained from selected authentic texts in Ayurveda, Traditional and Siddha medical systems. Anticancer drugs used in the Allopathic medicine also were observed and those provided an innovative suggestion on herbs used in compound preparations mentioned in the texts for this ailment. Identification of few medicinal preparations which can be used internally as well as externally were made. Those consists of mostly used herbs with corresponding pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetic properties of ingredients in Ayurveda point of view. Decoctions can be used irrespective of the place and type of the carcinoma internally. Other preparations can be used in corresponding skin over the area or at the visible lesion. As these are literary evidence - based, time tested authentic recipes, it has prime importance for day-to-day clinical practice and to proceed further clinical researches in cancer management.