Educational information, not medical advice — ask your doctor or midwife.
Hierba del cáncer is a small flowering herb used in Mexican folk medicine. Its botanical name is Cuphea aequipetala. The Spanish name means "cancer herb".
Healers used the crushed leaves and stems on wounds, sores and skin problems. Some people also drank it as a tea for stomach upsets. The name came from old use on ulcers and lumps, not from any proven effect on cancer.
Here is the honest verdict. There are no human trials showing that it treats cancer or any other illness. Long traditional use is not proof that a plant works, and it is not proof that it is safe.
Never use this herb in place of cancer care from a doctor. The name on the packet is folk naming, not a medical claim.
No one has shown how this plant acts in the human body. What exists is laboratory and animal work only.
In test tube studies, extracts slow the growth of some cancer cell lines. In mice given tumour cells, some extracts slowed tumour growth. Cells in a dish and mice are not people, so this does not show any effect on human cancer.
Lab tests also report antioxidant activity. That means the extract mops up certain reactive molecules in a tube.
In test tubes, extracts slow the growth of some bacteria. In rodents, extracts have eased stomach damage and swelling. Whether any of this happens in your body is unknown.
The plant's chemistry shifts with soil, season and how it is prepared. Two batches of the same herb may not act the same way.
Most use of this herb is homemade rather than commercial. The parts used are the leaves, stems and flowers.
Fresh plant, crushed and laid on the skin as a poultice. Washes made by boiling the plant in water.
Dried loose herb, sold in Mexican markets and herb shops. Water infusions or decoctions drunk as a tea.
Tinctures, which are alcohol extracts. Capsules of dried powder, mostly sold online.
Nothing here is standardised. Strength can differ a lot from batch to batch. Online products sometimes carry the wrong species inside.
Hierba del cáncer has a long place in Mexican and Central American folk medicine. Records of its use go back to the colonial era and continue in markets today.
Healers applied the crushed plant to wounds, boils, skin ulcers and sores that would not close. Washes were used on the mouth and gums. Teas were taken for stomach pain and diarrhoea.
The folk name points to sores and growths of the skin. It does not mean the plant was ever shown to treat the disease we now call cancer.
This section describes past practice. It is not a suggestion to copy it.
Stop using it and see a doctor if any of these happen.
A sore, lump or skin patch gets bigger, bleeds or does not heal within two weeks. A wound turns red, hot, swollen or leaks pus.
You get yellow skin or eyes, dark urine, or pain in your upper right belly. These can be signs of liver trouble.
You have vomiting or diarrhoea that will not stop. You feel faint or very weak.
Get emergency help for a rash with swelling of the lips, face or throat, or any trouble breathing. That can be a severe allergic reaction.
Tell your cancer team if you have taken this herb. They need to know, and they will not judge you for it.
In Mexico it is sold openly as a traditional market herb. It is not an approved medicine there.
In the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union it is not approved as a drug. Where it is sold, it is a food supplement, and no health claim about cancer is allowed.
Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.
What it is typically used for, usual dose, cautions, and the study behind it where real trial data exists.
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