Phytotherapy: An anti-hepatotoxicity and hepatoprotective approach in chemotherapy

Abstract

Chemotherapy induced-hepatotoxicity is one of the prevalent problems among cancer patients, with a wide spectrum of complications from liver dysfunction to liver necrosis. Therefore, in this study, we review the research findings on the effects of medicinal herbs and herbal compounds on the hepatotoxicity induced by anticancer drugs. The words hepatotoxicity and hepatoprotective along with the words cancer drug or chemotherapy in combination with some herbal terms such as medicinal plant, phyto* and herb* were used to search for relevant publications indexed in the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) and PubMed. Available evidence shows that certain medicinal plants and herbal derivatives can reduce cancer drug-induced hepatotoxicity and protect liver cells against complications by regulating hepatic enzymes and increasing antioxidant enzyme activities. Some herbal formulations, including traditional Chinese medicine, have also been reported to exhibit such effects. Medicinal plants can exert anti-hepatotoxicity effects mainly by increasing antioxidant activity, inhibiting inflammatory processes, and reducing cell necrosis induced by anti-cancer drugs. Phytotherapy can be used as an effective complementary treatment for anticancer drug-induced hepatotoxicity and prevent various complications in the liver.