Is Guyabano a Cure for Cancer?

A plant that is common in the Philippine, guyabano is drawing interest especially to health conscious individuals and to those with health issues. It is called soursop or guyabano in English, graviola in Portuguese and guanabana in Spanish. In the southern part of the Philippines it is called “abana”, a name that is perhaps a corruption of the Spanish guanabana. Guyabano is said to have originated from South America, and is now cultivated in many parts of the world especially in places where there are hot tropical climate. In the Philippines Guyabano might have found its way in the Philippines through the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade during the Spanish colonial era. 

The Guyabano plant is a small tree with small elliptical leaves and an oddly shaped unattractive flower with thick petals. The thin rind of its fruit is surrounded with soft pricks. Inside the fruit is a juicy white pulpy flesh and inedible black seeds. The flesh has a sweet and sour taste. The evergreen fruit is usually harvested when matured and kept in a place to ripen after several days.

Guyabano used to be planted only in the backyard for its fruit. The fruit is ranked low in Filipino preference. It is not as popular as some native fruits such as banana, melon, avocado, mango, durian and other fruits. But the hype that guyabano fruit and other parts of the plants are cure for some diseases particularly cancer has created an increase in demand for the fruit in the market.

Usually, the fruit is eaten as is. It is also used in smoothies, in the production of fruit juice and in the flavoring of ice cream. It has significant amount of vitamin C, vitamin B₁, and vitamin B_2..

The fruit of guyabano plant and its other parts such as the leaves, stems, barks and roots are used in traditional medicine. Diseases that are said to be treatable with guyabano include dysentery, skin disorders, scurvy, and diabetes among others. The good thing is that herbal medicine such as guyabano can be used without the undesirable side effects experienced by patients in using conventional pharmaceutical drugs.

Indeed, the hype that guyabano is a cure for several illnesses including cancer has brought about the manufacturing of products that are derived from extracts of guyabano. The products come from the USA, Canada, Brazil, Germany, Peru, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and other countries. They are labeled only as food supplement, but some people used it as a medicine or as complementary drug for cancer and other diseases anyway. Graviola or guyabano capsules ads and sales promotions have proliferated in the internet. Orders can be placed in big online stores such as eBay, Amazon and Lazada. Comments made in Amazon by those who used graviola or guyabano capsules claimed that they are effective in dealing with health issues such as eczema, stomach parasites and even cancer. However no refutable cancer organization has subscribed to the effectiveness of graviola products as treatment to the one of the most dreaded diseases.                                                                                                                                                          

 Cancer Research UK laboratory test indicates that guyabano extracts can kill some types of breast and liver cancer cells that are resistant to particular chemotherapy drugs. However, it won’t officially conclude that graviola extracts are cure for cancer since no large scale studies and tests have been conducted in humans. The Center therefore does not support the use of graviola as a treatment of any type of cancer.

The Leafy Green Moringa Oleifera (Malunggay)

Moringa is a small tree that grows in the tropical regions of the word. It is called “malunggay” or “kalamunggay” in the Philippines. The plant can grow as high as 10 to 20 feet.  Its bark is whitish gray which is surrounded with thick cork. The leaves are round and small, and the pods are long and slender.

Despite the softness of the plant’s wood and tender parts, moringa is in fact a hardy plant. In tropical climate it grows fast in almost any type of soil and is resistant to drought. Even a discarded trunk or branch on the ground will sprout young leaves and a new plant grows. The plant can be propagated through its seeds or cuttings. Moringa is easy to cultivate. A grown plant can sustain itself without much care and cultivation. In most cases fertilizer and pesticide are not necessary.

Moringa is primarily planted for its leaves and green pods as vegetable. The leaves are added in fish soup and chicken based dish that is called “tinola” and in vegetable dishes that are creamed with coconut milk. The plant is dubbed as a “poor man’s vegetable” because of its cheapness and abundance. In our family, we used to have plenty of this plant in our compound which also served as border fence in the sloping portion of our land. The plants had lush leaves and plentiful fruits. But we seldom harvest them, and if we did we only used the leaves and left the pods alone. Other people could help themselves with the leaves and the pods if they asked for them.

One thing that affects moringa’s commercial viability as a vegetable is its very short life span. In two or three days the tiny oval leaves begin to wilt and wither and come off from the stems. And this creates sort of messy sight into the area where the tiny fallen leaves are. It won’t help even if the moringa is put in the fridge. These are the reasons moringa is not sold as much and as frequently as other leafy greens despite its availability and cheapness. In addition, moringa is limited only in use as an addition to stew and soups and not as salad like other local leafy greens such as camote tops, kangkong and saluyot which can be prepared boiled with salted fish, calamansi, wild chili or siling labuyo and vinegar or with vinegar, calamansi juice and salt as a dip or dressing.  

The leaves are the most nutritious parts of the plants. Like almost green leafy vegetables , the moringa leaves contain Vitamins B, C and K, beta carotene, potassium,  manganese, protein and other special nutrients. Because of its nutritional value moringa is recommended by the government for consumption of lactating mothers and children. Some bread such as “pan de sal” and noodles are fortified with moringa leaves to enhance its nutritional contents.

The hype that some herbs, fruits and vegetables have medicinal properties that are at par or better than conventional drugs has created an impression to some people that herbal products offer hope for the treatment of diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and even cancer. However, health authorities have warned people over the use of those products as alternative medicines because official confirmation has yet to be issued regarding their effectiveness.  

                                                                                                  

Moringa is used to be regarded only as a backyard plant because of its low commercial importance, but now some farmers cultivate it in large scale because of the increasing demand of natural herbal products for food supplement and alternative medicines. Moringa leaves are dried and made into organic powder, capsule, oil, tea, food supplement and other products. Aside from consuming the leaves as vegetable, locals use it also in traditional medicine. As an example, a cup of boiled moringa leaves is used to treat constipation.