The synergistic effects of traditional Chinese herbs and radiotherapy for cancer treatment (Review)

  • Authors:
    • Lili Jia
    • Shumei Ma
    • Xue Hou
    • Xin Wang
    • Abu Baker Layth Qased
    • Xuefei Sun
    • Nan Liang
    • Huicheng Li
    • Heqing Yi
    • Dejuan Kong
    • Xiaodong Liu
    • Feiyue Fan
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: March 12, 2013     https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2013.1245
  • Pages: 1439-1447
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Abstract

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been demonstrated to have potent cytotoxic activity against certain malignant tumors. Ionizing radiation (IR) is one of the most effective methods used in the clinical treatment of cancer. The drawback of a single formula is that it limits the treatment efficacy for cancer, while comprehensive strategies require additional theoretical support. However, a combination of different antitumor treatment modalities is advantageous in restricting the non-specific toxicity often observed with an extremely high dose of a single regimen. The induction of apoptotic cell death is a significant process in tumor cells following radiotherapy or chemotherapy, and resistance to these treatments has been linked to a low propensity for apoptosis. Autophagy is a response of cancer cells to IR or chemotherapy, and involves the prominent formation of autophagic vacuoles in the cytoplasm. In this review, the synergistic effects of TCM and radiotherapy are summarized and the underlying mechanisms are illustrated, providing new therapeutic strategies for cancer.
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May 2013
Volume 5 Issue 5

Print ISSN: 1792-1074
Online ISSN:1792-1082

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Copy and paste a formatted citation
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Spandidos Publications style
Jia L, Ma S, Hou X, Wang X, Qased A, Sun X, Liang N, Li H, Yi H, Kong D, Kong D, et al: The synergistic effects of traditional Chinese herbs and radiotherapy for cancer treatment (Review). Oncol Lett 5: 1439-1447, 2013
APA
Jia, L., Ma, S., Hou, X., Wang, X., Qased, A., Sun, X. ... Fan, F. (2013). The synergistic effects of traditional Chinese herbs and radiotherapy for cancer treatment (Review). Oncology Letters, 5, 1439-1447. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2013.1245
MLA
Jia, L., Ma, S., Hou, X., Wang, X., Qased, A., Sun, X., Liang, N., Li, H., Yi, H., Kong, D., Liu, X., Fan, F."The synergistic effects of traditional Chinese herbs and radiotherapy for cancer treatment (Review)". Oncology Letters 5.5 (2013): 1439-1447.
Chicago
Jia, L., Ma, S., Hou, X., Wang, X., Qased, A., Sun, X., Liang, N., Li, H., Yi, H., Kong, D., Liu, X., Fan, F."The synergistic effects of traditional Chinese herbs and radiotherapy for cancer treatment (Review)". Oncology Letters 5, no. 5 (2013): 1439-1447. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2013.1245