V. Amygdalina: Folk Medicine, Analysis, and Potential Application for Cancer Treatment

Folk medicine (FM) is practiced by people without access to conventional medical services; it usually involves the use of natural remedies such as herbs or vegetable substances. Before the use of pharmaceutical drugs, and surgical procedures, these healing methods were used, and are still in use today. It is estimated that twenty five percent of all therapeutic drugs trace their origins to plants, and almost two-thirds of the people of the world rely on their healing powers. One hundred years ago, health care in the U.S. was provided by a highly competitive medical sect, and quite infrequently, folk medicine practitioners were patronized. However, FM usage in the U.S. has increased drastically during the past decade. National surveys of adults (18 years of age or older) show that one in three adults use unconventional therapies or Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) in the U.S. The rate of CAM usage is more than eighty percent among cancer patients. Vernonia amygdalina (VA) is well known for its medicinal importance. Fractionation of the VA extracts with solvents of varying polarities, by silica gels analyses, UV Spectrophotometer, HPLC, TLC and NMR techniques have yielded some biologically-active fractions.