Yew And Its Action Against Cancer

Yew (Taxus brevifolia)

Yew is a tree of great longevity. Its cortex contains an alkaloid called taxol, widely used in chemotherapy. Said compound has a marked antimitotic action, ie, prevents the tumor cells replication.

Cancers that are more responsive to the taxol are ovarian and breast, being also effective in other tumors, such as lung, melanoma, stomach, etc.


When administering taxol alone, it produces a number of side effects such as low white blood cells, allergy, nausea, hair loss, etc.. These effects are produced specifically by managing a substance that in nature is not isolated, but rather naturally complemented with many other compounds.


For example, we can find in yew 40 other taxanes (alkaloids) different that, as in all natural products, they interpenetrate perfectly for the healing purpose.


Even so, it is unadvisable the use of this tree, as it also contains a highly toxic alkaloid called taxina, the effects can be deadly. In fact, the first Gauls poisoned the tip of their arrows with the juice extracted from yew leaves which made them deadly weapons.



Yew plant
Currently there are natural preparations based on yew that not present any danger. Even so, the use of this remedy should always be supervised by a health professional.

Taxol was discovered in the early 60s. In 1978 , the National Cancer Institute of the United States  asked to the Forest Service from the same country 30,000 Kg of yew bark to produce taxol, as it is in it where the substance was found.


The problem lies in the fact that a specimen than 500 years produces approximately a bark kilo!. Also when divests to this tree its bark dies. It is estimated that in the last 15 years have been cut more than 4 million yews for medicinal purposes.


Yew forests are already very scarce, which means that once again we have failed to rationalize the resources that nature offers us, endangering a species more than miraculous. Luckily , recently were able to synthesize taxol in laboratory, which was a great relief for this species.


Furthermore, it has been found that the leaves and yew branch tips also contain taxol, which are already natural preparations made from the aforementioned tree parts that do not isolate any components, resulting in a completely natural remedy unlike the isolated taxol.


Leaves collection and yew branches does not represent threat to the species,because it can be extracted much remedy without killing a single species ,unlike what happened with the crust.

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