The Efficacy of Natural Extracts (Lemongrass, White Tea, and Dandelion Root) and their Interactions with Conventional Chemotherapeutic Drugs for the Treatment of Colon Cancer

The problem with conventional cancer treatments is that the drugs used are not selective towards cancer and in turn are toxic to healthy cells. New therapeutic development should target vulnerabilities that are unique to cancer cells that can trigger cell death. Numerous natural extracts and compounds have been reported to have efficacious medicinal properties with selective activity towards various diseases. Dandelion (Taraxacum spp) root and lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) extracts each contain multiple bioactive compounds and have been shown to target multiple pathways in cancer cells to selectively induce apoptosis. Recent work in our lab shows that lemongrass and white tea extracts possess the ability to selectively induce apoptosis in lymphoma and leukemia models. Herein, we report the anticancer properties of ethanolic lemongrass extract in colorectal cancer models. These extracts are to be tested for possible interactions with existing colorectal cancer chemotherapy drugs. Additionally, none of these extracts have been examined for their efficacy in tumour-bearing transgenic mice. Therefore, our objective is to utilize a transgenic animal model to demonstrate the ability of these extracts to inhibit the onset of colon cancer. Thus, utilizing natural extracts could be a potential means to treating and/or preventing the occurrence of cancer in a non-toxic manner without disrupting chemotherapeutic treatments. Most importantly, since these extracts are well-tolerated, they can be taken over long periods of time, decreasing the chances of relapse.