St John’s Wort

 

According to The Sunday Times Magazine 22nd September 2001, using St John’s Wort for depression, can weaken the effects of chemotherapy.

 

It does this by raising blood levels of an enzyme called CYP3A4, which is known to alter and inactivate several widely used anti cancer agents, including irinotecan, aclitaxel and tamoxifen.

 

Depression is a very common complaint among cancer patients, and many choose herbal remedies to treat this or other symptoms of their condition.

 

The advice must be to seek clarification from your consultant if you are currently taking any form of herbal or other medication.

 

Back to the homepage or Hit your ← return key to go back to the page you came from.