Essiac/Flor–Essence (PDQ®): Complementary and alternative medicine - Patient Information [NCI]

What are Essiac and Flor–Essence?

Essiac and Flor–Essence are herbal tea mixtures that have been used as anticancer treatments. They have been used to treat other health conditions also, including diabetes, AIDS, and gastrointestinal diseases.

Essiac is reported to contain 4 herbs:

Flor–Essence is reported to contain the same 4 herbs found in Essiac plus these 4 other herbs:

Different batches of these mixtures may contain different ingredients or amounts and the effects may not always be the same.

Essiac and Flor–Essence are sold worldwide as health tonics or herbal dietary supplements. One company sells Flor–Essence and several companies make and sell mixtures called Essiac. This summary refers to the trademarked (brand name) mixtures only.

What is the history of the discovery and use of Essiac and Flor–Essence as complementary or alternative treatments for cancer?

A nurse in Canada first began to promote Essiac as a cancer treatment in the 1920s. Today, Essiac and Flor–Essence may be sold as herbal supplements as long as they do not claim to treat or cure cancer.

What is the theory behind the claim that Essiac and Flor–Essence are useful in treating cancer?

Supporters of Essiac and Flor–Essence say that when the herbs they contain are mixed in exact amounts, the mixtures make the immune system stronger, have anti-inflammatory effects (decrease swelling, redness, and pain), and show anticancer activity. Individual herbs in the Essiac and Flor–Essence formulas have been shown to have these effects, but some of these herbs also have been shown to help cancer grow. No results from controlled trials have been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals on the effect of the exact formulas of Essiac and Flor–Essence in patients with cancer or other health conditions. See the PDQ health professional summary on Essiac/Flor–Essence for more information on theory.

How are Essiac and Flor–Essence administered?

Essiac and Flor–Essence are taken orally (by mouth) as herbal teas. According to the companies that make the teas, the proper dose of Essiac depends on why a person is taking it. The maker recommends that Essiac be taken for 12 weeks in a row. The maker of Flor–Essence states that adults may take between 30 and 360 milliliters (1 to 12 fluidounces) of Flor–Essence tea a day, depending on individual needs, and may take it on an ongoing basis.

The makers of Essiac and Flor–Essence state that the products can be used with other therapies. Some supporters of Essiac, however, recommend that patients avoid any other anticancer therapy (such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy) when taking Essiac, because it may interfere with immune system function and prevent Essiac from working effectively.

Have any preclinical (laboratory or animal) studies been conducted using Essiac or Flor–Essence?

Research in a laboratory or using animals is done to find out if a drug, procedure, or treatment is likely to be useful in humans. Animal tumor models are used to learn how a cancer may progress and to test new treatments. These preclinical studies are done before any testing in humans is begun. The following laboratory and animal studies of Essiac have been reported:

Studies of Flor–Essence have shown differing results:

Laboratory and animal studies have reported on the effects of some of the chemicals found in the different herbs used to make Essiac and Flor–Essence. These studies report that certain chemicals may:

It is not known if taking Essiac and Flor–Essence products can give humans enough of the chemicals that produce these effects.

Have any clinical trials (research studies with people) of Essiac or Flor–Essence been conducted?

No results of clinical studies (research studies with people) of Flor–Essence have been reported. In addition, no reports of clinical trials of Essiac have been reported in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Brief descriptions of one incomplete clinical trial and one review of reports on cancer patients who took Essiac have been published, however.

Have any side effects or risks been reported from Essiac or Flor–Essence?

The only reported side effects caused by Essiac are nausea and vomiting. According to the company making Flor–Essence, side effects may include increased bowel movements, frequent urination, swollen glands, skin blemishes, flu-like symptoms, and slight headaches.

Is Essiac or Flor–Essence approved by the FDA for use as a cancer treatment in the United States?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved Essiac or Flor–Essence to treat cancer or any other medical condition.

Companies sell Essiac and Flor–Essence as health tonics or herbal dietary supplements, which the FDA regulates as foods, not drugs. Essiac or Flor–Essence would have to be approved by the FDA as a drug for companies to claim that the products treat or prevent a disease.

Changes To This Summary (03 / 19 / 2008)

The PDQcancer information summaries are reviewed regularly and updated as new information becomes available. This section describes the latest changes made to this summary as of the date above.

Changes were made to this summary to match those made to the health professional version.

General CAM Information

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)—also referred to as integrative medicine—includes a broad range of healing philosophies, approaches, and therapies. A therapy is generally called complementary when it is used in addition to conventional treatments; it is often called alternative when it is used instead of conventional treatment. (Conventional treatments are those that are widely accepted and practiced by the mainstream medical community.) Depending on how they are used, some therapies can be considered either complementary or alternative. Complementary and alternative therapies are used in an effort to prevent illness, reduce stress, prevent or reduce side effects and symptoms, or control or cure disease.

Unlike conventional treatments for cancer, complementary and alternative therapies are often not covered by insurance companies. Patients should check with their insurance provider to find out about coverage for complementary and alternative therapies.

Cancer patients considering complementary and alternative therapies should discuss this decision with their doctor, nurse, or pharmacist as they would any therapeutic approach, because some complementary and alternative therapies may interfere with their standard treatment or may be harmful when used with conventional treatment.

Evaluation of CAM Approaches

It is important that the same rigorous scientific evaluation used to assess conventional approaches be used to evaluate CAM therapies. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) are sponsoring a number of clinical trials (research studies) at medical centers to evaluate CAM therapies for cancer.

Conventional approaches to cancer treatment have generally been studied for safety and effectiveness through a rigorous scientific process that includes clinical trials with large numbers of patients. Less is known about the safety and effectiveness of complementary and alternative methods. Few CAM therapies have undergone rigorous evaluation. A small number of CAM therapies originally considered to be purely alternative approaches are finding a place in cancer treatment—not as cures, but as complementary therapies that may help patients feel better and recover faster. One example is acupuncture. According to a panel of experts at a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Conference in November 1997, acupuncture has been found to be effective in the management of chemotherapy-associated nausea and vomiting and in controlling pain associated with surgery. In contrast, some approaches, such as the use of laetrile, have been studied and found ineffective or potentially harmful.

The NCI Best Case Series Program, which was started in 1991, is one way CAM approaches that are being used in practice are being investigated. The program is overseen by the NCI's Office of Cancer Complementary and Alternative Medicine (OCCAM). Health care professionals who offer alternative cancer therapies submit their patients' medical records and related materials to OCCAM. OCCAM conducts a critical review of the materials and develops follow-up research strategies for approaches deemed to warrant NCI-initiated research.

Questions to Ask Your Health Care Provider About CAM

When considering complementary and alternative therapies, patients should ask their health care provider the following questions:

To Learn More About CAM

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) facilitates research and evaluation of complementary and alternative practices, and provides information about a variety of approaches to health professionals and the public.

NCCAM and the NIH National Library of Medicine (NLM) jointly developed CAM on PubMed, a free and easy-to-use search tool for finding CAM-related journal citations. As a subset of the NLM's PubMed bibliographic database, CAM on PubMed features more than 230,000 references and abstracts for CAM-related articles from scientific journals. This database also provides links to the Web sites of over 1,800 journals, allowing users to view full-text articles. (A subscription or other fee may be required to access full-text articles.) CAM on PubMed is available through the NCCAM Web site. It can also be accessed through NLM PubMed bibliographic database by selecting the "Limits" tab and choosing "Complementary Medicine" as a subset.

The NCI Office of Cancer Complementary and Alternative Medicine (OCCAM) coordinates the activities of the NCI in the area of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). OCCAM supports CAM cancer research and provides information about cancer-related CAM to health providers and the general public via the NCI Web site.

U.S. residents may call the NCI Cancer Information Service toll free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237) Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. A trained Cancer Information Specialist is available to answer your questions.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates drugs and medical devices to ensure that they are safe and effective.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforces consumer protection laws. Publications available from the FTC include:

If you want to know more about cancer and how it is treated, or if you wish to know about clinical trials for your type of cancer, you can call the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-422-6237, toll free. A trained information specialist can talk with you and answer your questions.