2.3.2 Clearing Heat and Detoxifying

2.3.2 Clearing Heat and Detoxifying

Clearing heat and detoxifying is one of the important treatment principles in TCM and also a major approach for treating liver cancer. Experimental studies have proven that heat-clearing and detoxifying formulas have antibacterial, antiviral, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, immune-modulating, and anticancer effects. Commonly used heat-clearing and detoxifying herbs in clinical practice include hedyotis diffusa, sophora flavescens, prunella vulgaris, polygonatum odoratum, indigofera tinctoria, isatis tinctoria, scutellaria baicalensis, polygonum cuspidatum, rhizoma ligustici, lithospermum erythrorhizon, taraxacum mongolicum, viola philippica, coptis chinensis, scutellaria baicalensis, phellodendron amurense, sophora flavescens, gentiana scabra, and smilax glabra.

Zhou Daihan et al. [5] treated 22 patients with liver cancer using lotus leaf tablets containing polygonum cuspidatum, polygonatum odoratum, and trillium tschonoskii, and all patients survived for more than one year. Wang Hongqi et al. [7] found that heat-clearing and detoxifying herbs containing wintergreen and polygonum cuspidatum could cause necrosis and apoptosis of H₂₂ ascitic hepatocarcinoma cells in mice and increase CD4 and CD8 cells in the ascitic fluid of tumor-bearing mice. Yao Shukun et al. [58–60] conducted extensive experiments and proved that the mechanism by which the liver-clearing and blood-stasis-resolving formula (polygonum cuspidatum, hedyotis diffusa, and sparganium stoloniferum) prevents liver cancer is related to inhibiting the overexpression of Bcl-2 and H-ras genes, as well as blocking angiogenesis and reducing the VEGF mRNA content in liver cancer cells.