Yun T K
Laboratory of Experimental Pathology, Korea Cancer Center Hospital, Seoul.
Lancet Oncol. 2001 Jan;2(1):49-55. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(00)00196-0.
For the past 50 years, the main weapons in the war against cancer have been early detection and surgical removal, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and attempts to develop gene therapy. However, the results so far are less than ideal. One strategy now is to switch from therapeutic approaches to prevention of cancer by improving lifestyle and by identifying effective natural products as chemopreventive agents. One promising candidate with cancer-preventive effects that are not specific to any organ is Panax ginseng C A Meyer, a herb with a long medicinal history. Its protective influence against cancer has been shown by extensive preclinical and epidemiological studies, but these effects need to be carefully investigated by scientific clinical trials focusing on the major cancer killers stomach, lung, liver, and colorectal cancer.
在过去的50年里，对抗癌症的主要手段包括早期检测、手术切除、放射疗法、化学疗法以及尝试开发基因疗法。然而，目前的结果并不理想。现在的一种策略是从治疗方法转向通过改善生活方式以及识别有效的天然产物作为化学预防剂来预防癌症。一种具有癌症预防作用且对任何器官都无特异性的有前景的候选物是人参（Panax ginseng C A Meyer），这是一种有着悠久药用历史的草药。广泛的临床前和流行病学研究已表明其对癌症具有保护作用，但这些效果需要通过针对主要癌症杀手——胃癌、肺癌、肝癌和结直肠癌的科学临床试验进行仔细研究。
