Lemongrass wipes out 95% of tumours in 15 days — nature's top cancer killer? Here's the science

A promising new research on natural plant extracts has cited lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) and dandelion root as "potential cancer fighters", with reportedly better-than-chemotherapy rate of efficacy.

Nicolas Hulscher, an epidemiologist, highlighted a study on how ethanolic lemongrass extract dramatically suppressed tumour growth in mice implanted with human non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma cells.

Extract reduces tumour volume

Administered orally at about 80 mg/kg/day, the extract achieved a staggering 95% reduction in tumour volume over 15 days, with no observed weight loss or toxicity in the animals.

This selective action targets cancer cells while sparing healthy ones.

How does it work?

Mechanism of action

Researchers found that the extract's mechanism of action works by inducing programmed cell death (called "apoptosis") through the following:

• Oxidative stress overload

• Activation of the "extrinsic death pathway", and

• Mitochondrial collapse.

This cocktail of biochemical actions leads to energy production "failure" in tumours.

Smashing lymphoma, leukaemia cells

Hulscher emphasises that lemongrass extract effectively killed multiple human lymphoma and leukaemia cell lines in vitro, but left normal human peripheral blood "mononuclear" cells unharmed.

This study has been paired with similar findings on dandelion root extract, which also curbs tumour growth by over 90% in mouse models without side effects.

The post calls for urgent clinical trials on these affordable, non-toxic plants, arguing they could rival conventional oncology drugs and deserve exploration beyond animal studies.

What's in lemon grass?

Essential oil extracted from lemongrass contains terpenes and their derivatives.

Lemon grass extracts also contain different classes of polyphenols. Both citral and lemongrass display vasorelaxant activity ex vivo (outside living organisms), acting by the promotion of endothelial nitric oxide/prostanoids secretion, together with the blockage of calcium channels in the vascular smooth muscle.

Citral also displays what scientists call a "negative chronotrope effect", probably due to a centrally mediated enhancement of parasympathetic activity.

Lemon grass has also been explored for its anti-hypertensive potential, but has not yet been thoroughly studied.

Researchers are conduction preclinical and clinical studies to identify other compounds with anti-hypertensive activity and additional pharmacological pathways as well as the safety profile of lemongrass.

(Note: in Asian dishes, lemon grass (tanglad in Filipino, ta-kry in Thai), is commonly used in preparing soup, i.e. Tom Yam, Tinola.

Dandelion's cancer-zapping properties

Meanwhile, a peer-reviewed study published in Oncotarget,has also documented one of the most extraordinary findings in natural-compound cancer research: an aqueous extract of dandelion root — reduced human colon tumour growth in mice by more than 90%.

More importantly, it showed zero toxicity after 75 days of daily administration, and selectively killed cancer cells while sparing normal cells entirely.

Dandelion root also destroyed more than 95% of colon cancer cells in vitro and activated multiple programmed-cell-death pathways simultaneously. 

No synthetic chemotherapy drug achieves all of these effects at once — which is why this study deserves far more attention than it received.

What are mouse models, why are they used?

A mouse model is a laboratory mouse (Mus musculus) that is used as a research subject to study human biology and diseas.

They are extensively used because they share significant genetic and physiological similarities with humans.

These mice can be naturally afflicted with a condition, selectively bred, or genetically engineered to mimic specific aspects of human diseases like cancer, diabetes, and genetic disorders. 

Peer-reviewed studies

This aligns with a 2018 peer-reviewed study in Oncotarget, where lemongrass and white tea extracts induced apoptosis in lymphoma cells and reduced xenograft tumour growth in vivo (studies conducted within a whole, living organism).

Another relevant 2019 study in Integrative Cancer Therapies found lemongrass extract similarly triggered dose-dependent apoptosis in human colon cancer cells, inhibited tumorigenesis (the gain/fast proliferation of malignant properties in normal cells) in mice, and enhanced the efficacy of chemotherapy like FOLFOX while mitigating its side effects.

While "preclinical" (no humans involved in efficacy/safety study), these findings suggest lemongrass's bioactive compounds, like citral, hold therapeutic potential, warranting human trials to validate safety and efficacy against cancers.

Lemon grass vs hypertension

A 2022 study published in the journal Biology showed that in both healthy and hypertensive animals, the acute administration of lemongrass results in a decrease in blood pressure, sometimes accompanied by a compensatory increase in heart rate.

Similarly, in healthy and hypertensive human subjects, the consumption of lemongrass tea decreases blood pressure.