Pharmacognostic Evaluation of Methanolic Extract of Cyclea peltata Lam Hook F Thoms for Its Anticancer Properties

Abstract

Cancer, medically known as neoplasm, is a relatively autonomous growth of malignant tissues. It is an uncontrolled growth of cells with loss of differentiation and commonly with metastasis, the spread of cancer to other tissues and organs (Khan and Mukhtar, 2010). Cancer may be uncontrollable and incurable, and may occur at any time, at any age and in any part of the body. It is caused by a complex, poorly understood interplay of genetic and environmental factors (Pandey, 2010). Cancer annually kills about 3500 per million populations around the world. According to the 2014 survey by the UN cancer agency, cancer is the biggest cause of mortality worldwide with an estimated 8.2 million deaths from cancer in 2012 alone. Cancer cases worldwide are forecast to rise by 75% and reach close to 25 million over the next two decades (IARC, 2014). newlineBreast cancer is the third leading cancer in women worldwide, after cervical cancer and lung cancer, with an estimated age standardized incidence rate of 20.7 per 100,000 females (Vatanasapt et al., 2002). One million women are estimated to be newly diagnosed with breast cancer each year worldwide (Hanf and Gonder, 2005). According to the population based cancer registry (PBCR 2009-2011), in India, breast cancer is the most common cancer and accounts for 25% to 31% of all cancers in women. The average age of developing breast cancer has shifted from 50-70 years to 30-50 years, and cancers in the young tend to be more aggressive. As reported by the World Health Organization (WHO), India tops the list in breast cancer incidence and an estimated 70218 women died in India due to breast cancer in 2012. Treatment in cancer usually requires a multimodality approach including medical, surgical and radiological treatment to reduce mortality and improve palliation in women where cure is not a possibility (Hortobagyi, 1998). An alternative solution to allopathic medicine plagued with side effects, is the use of folk medicinal plant preparation to arrest the insidious nature of the disease.