Harvard researchers to study Tibetan cancer medicines

Professors from Harvard University will join researchers from Tibet to study Tibetan herbal medicines used in the treatment of cancer, a line of therapy based on ancient Buddhist texts drawn from age-old Indian medical practices.
Researchers from China's Tibetan Medicine External Preparations Engineering Lab in Gansu province of northwest China, together with professors of Harvard's School of Public Health, will use new pharmaceutical technology to explore the mechanism behind Tibetan medicines' efficacy, especially in treating cancers.
Harvard professor David Christiani said a number of traditional Tibetan herbal medicines help alleviate cancer symptoms and even prolong some patients' survival time.
"Clinically, we know these herbs help, but it is not quite clear why and how they work scientifically," said Chrisitiani, who will work on the program with three of his Harvard colleagues, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Tibetan medicines include more than 2,000 kinds of herbs that grow in Tibet and the regions of Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan.
Growing and collecting the herbs are one of the most important ways for Tibetans in these regions to make a living.

Tibetan medicine, known as Tripitaka, is regarded as one of the earliest collection of Buddhist writings.
The information contained in them was originally passed down orally, and finally written down in third century BC.
The Tripitaka was translated from Sanskrit language of ancient India. Besides medicine, it covers topics on philosophy, logics, literature, linguistics, art, astronomy, architecture and calendar calculation.

"The Tibetan Tripitaka contains Sakyamuni's classifications of 440 ailments that were believed to be associated with wind, bile and phlegm, and were categorised accordingly," said Karma Trinley, an associate professor of Tibet University.
Trinley, who carried out research on the writings said many of the medical theories in the book are still used by Tibetan doctors today.