Tahira Bibi
Quaid-i-Azam University, Pakistan
Title: Ethnomedicinal uses of the plants and animals for breast cancer by the local communities of northern, Balochistan, Pakistan
Biography
Biography: Tahira Bibi
Abstract
Ethnopharmacological relevance: Breast cancer is the most common invasive cancer in females worldwide. Breast cancer rates are much higher in developed nations compared to developing ones. This first report survey was commenced with an aim to document ethnic knowledge regarding the use of folk medicines for breast cancer in women among the local communities of northern Balochistan, Pakistan using quantitative ethnobotanical approaches. Materials & Methods: The information was collected through personal observations, interviews, rapid appraisal approach, open ended questionnaire, structured and semi-structured interviews were conducted to assemble information using Pre-Informed Consensus (PIC). Results were analyzed using quantitative indices of Use Value Citations (UVC) and Disease Consensus Index (DCI). Results: A total of 194 inhabitants of the northern Balochistan (80%) women, (13%) men and (7%) men traditional healers of different age groups were interviewed. The informants were divided into four different age groups. Most of the informants belonged to the age of above 55 years. The research led to the identification of 47 plant species, distributed over 30 families. The most frequently represented families are Asteraceae and Labiatae with four species each. The most common life forms of plants are trees and the most common parts of the plants used are their seeds (29%). Plants are often used as powder for the treatment of cancer (31%). The highest Use Value Citations (UVC) and Disease Consensus Index (DCI) were reported for the Ferula baluchistanica. Conclusions: This study has revealed significant information on various medicinal plants used for breast cancer of women by the local people of area. In present study 10 new species of plants and 2 animal species (Frog and Bat) and one mineral (Sulphur) have not been documented as anticancer until now. We found no references to possible chemical investigations in these species. The efficacy and safety of these new reported plants needs to be evaluated for phytochemical and pharmacological and toxicity studies.