The role of Chinese medicine in clinical oncology

Chinese Medicine (CM) has been used for several thousand years, playing an important role in the prevention and treatment of diseases including cancer. In the recent four decades, a number of CM herbs have aroused extreme interest in the world-isolating anticancer components from medicinal herbs, using them as biological response modifiers, and most recently as angiogenesis inhibitors. The present review reports both the experimental and clinical results obtained in the field of clinical oncology, especially conducted by our group. The review also presents the possible future of integration of CM and modern medicine in basic research and clinical practice, especially when CM used as adjuvant and maintenance therapy.