TMC has been experimenting with traditional practices such as yoga to boost immunity and speed post-surgery recovery for some time, but it also cultivates medicinal plants and subjects them to rigorous clinical and human trials. The idea was born in February 2018 following an experiment by Dr. Vikram Gota. Ashwagandha.
Dr. Gota, professor and head of clinical pharmacology at TMC's Advanced Cancer Treatment, Research and Education Center (ACTREC) in Navi Mumbai, tested the efficacy and safety of withaferin A, an active compound derived from ashwagandha. was. His research revealed that the mortality rate of bone marrow transplant patients could be reduced by 50%. Thus, TMC decided to evaluate hundreds of other medicinal plants for cancer treatment and in Khopoli he invested Rs 300 million to create an integrated center for cancer treatment, research and education. This led to the establishment of ICTREC.
Since then, Dr. Gota and his team have made great strides and published multiple scientific papers showing that turmeric and ashwagandha may be powerful anti-cancer agents. Turmeric's anti-inflammatory properties have long been known in India, but new research shows that turmeric has anti-proliferative (tends to inhibit cell growth) and immunomodulatory (helps change immune system responses) properties. has also been shown to have
20 acres, 500 species
The Ministry of Atomic Energy, the TMC's competent authority, is funding the establishment of ICTREC, while the Maharashtra government has given it 20 acres of land in Khopoli. With the introduction of ICTREC, TMC becomes the first cancer hospital in India to offer cultivation and preservation of medicinal plants with potential benefits in cancer treatment. The facility is expected to be operational by 2026 and will also provide standard cancer treatments such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
ICTREC plans to grow more than 500 plants, some of which require climate control. Collaborating with Central Ayurvedic Cancer Clinical Research Institute (CARIC), Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Jammu Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Agarkar Research Institute, Pune, Podar Ayurvedic Hospital, Mumbai, IIT Bombay, Banaras Hindu University, etc. It's planned. Other research institutes are already researching Ayurveda and cancer treatment.
Skeptics say temper is hopeful
Ancient Indian medical systems have been criticized for not being evidence-based. Herbal “cures” for COVID-19 by Indian FMCG companies during the pandemic support this view. However, ICTREC applies traditional medical knowledge to rigorous testing and clinical trials.
Dr. Pankaj Chaturvedi, a head and neck cancer surgeon and deputy director of the Center for Cancer Epidemiology at TMC, is leading the project. ICTREC aims to develop therapeutically effective drugs derived from medicinal plants through rigorous testing, he said.
But Dr Cyric Abbey Phillips, a senior consultant in clinical and translational hepatology and famous for busting the myths of traditional medicine on her Twitter account, has concerns.
“While there are many low-quality basic preclinical studies in cells, tissues, and small animals demonstrating a wide range of potential activities for Withaferin A, it is difficult to predict whether it will be used in GvHD (graft-versus-host disease) or cancer therapy. “Nothing has conclusively shown any benefit against other associated complications,” he said.
“They are using traditional medicinal plants to deal with complications after cancer treatment and to strengthen the immunity of patients affected by treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation. , is not justified by the level of evidence available in the published medical literature,” he added.
“There's a lot of interest globally.”
However, Dr. Meghal Sanghavi, a senior surgical oncologist at Wockhardt Hospital in Mumbai, said, “We appreciate that the TMC is not advocating Ayurveda without evidence and is starting a trial first.'' I am confident that thorough research will be conducted prior to implementation.”
After five years of experimentation and testing with ashwagandha, Dr. Gota isn't done yet. He said there is some evidence to suggest that ashwagandha may halve mortality rates in bone marrow transplant cases, but he is not interested in the second phase of a trial aimed at validating these findings. We are making preparations for this.
Dr Shripad Banavali, Academic Dean, TMC, also said there was no need to rush to prove anyone wrong or right. “A single randomized trial can take up to 10 to 15 years. We are just getting started. We will only make claims about the anticancer effects of medicinal plants if trials show that. Masu.”
There has been considerable international interest in ICTREC's work, he said, adding: “There will be multi-center clinical trials. Several global cancer treatment centers have expressed interest in long-term studies of medicinal plants. … We would like to cooperate with such centers around the world.”
