Ethnoveterinary remedies used in British Columbia, Canada to treat cancer in pets by Cheryl Lans, taken from thnoveterinary medicines used for pets in British Columbia Permalink: http://amzn.com/0978346890 Abstract Ethnoveterinary data for British Columbia was collected over a six-month period in 2003. This paper present the medicinal plants used for cancer in dogs and cats. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 60 participants obtained using a purposive sample. There are two case studies in the paper. Dog A was given Phytolacca decandra, Ganoderma lucidum, Lentinula edodes, Rumex acetosella leaf, Arctium lappa root, Ulmus fulva bark and Rheum palmatum root. This dog was also given six herbs for lymphatic drainage. Dog B was given Frangula purshiana bark, Zingiber officinale root, Glycyrrhiza glabra root, Ulmus fulva bark, Althea officinalis root, Rheum palmatum stem, Rumex crispus root and Plantago psyllium seeds. Trifolium pratense is used for tumours in the prostate. The following plants are also used to treat cancer: Artemisia annua, Taraxacum officinale and Rumex crispus. These treatments were said to prolong the lives of the dogs treated. Keywords: ethnoveterinary medicine; British Columbia; pets; cancer; tumours; medicinal plants; mushrooms 1. Introduction In this paper we present the medicinal remedies used to treat cancer in pets in British Columbia, the first paper of its kind. A ccording to Balunas and Kinghorn (2005) anticancer agents from plants currently in clinical use can be categorized into four main classes of compounds: vinca (or Catharanthus) alkaloids, epipodophyllotoxins, taxanes, and camptothecins. Vinblastine and vincristine, prescribed for the last four decades, were isolated from Catharanthus roseus (L.) G. Don (Apocynaceae) (formerly Vinca rosea L.). These vinca alkaloids and several of their semi-synthetic derivatives block mitosis with metaphase arrest by binding specifically to tubulin resulting in its depolymerization. The epipodophyllotoxins bind tubulin, causing breaks in the DNA strand during the G2 phase of the cell cycle by irreversibly inhibiting DNA topoisomerase II. Paclitaxel was originally identified from Pacific yew (Taxus brevifolia Nutt. Taxaceae) and has been prescribed in North America since the 1990s. This compound can now be synthesized from base molecules in other Taxus spp. The taxanes, including paclitaxel and derivatives, act by binding tubulin without allowing depolymerization or interfering with tubulin assembly. Camptothecin was isolated from Camptotheca acuminata Decne. (Nyssaceae) but originally showed unacceptable myelosuppression (Balunas and Kinghorn, 2005). Interest in camptothecin was revived when it was found to act by selective inhibition of topoisomerase I, involved in cleavage and reassembly of DNA. The taxanes and the camptothecins alone accounted for about one-third of the global anticancer market, or more than 2.75 billion dollars in 2002 alone. Podophyllotoxin is a lignan that was isolated from the resin of Podophyllum peltatum L. (Berberidaceae), safer derivatives have since been maed, the first being etoposide. Many commonly used herbs have cancer-preventive properties; several of these herbs are dealt with in this paper. They include members of the Lamiaceae family (mint, sage, rosemary and thyme); spices of the Zingiberaceae family (turmeric and ginger (Zingiber officinale)); licorice root (Fabaceae) and herbs in the Apiaceae family (celery, dill and parsley) (Craig, 1999). These plants typically contain phytosterols, triterpenes, flavonoids, saponins, and carotenoids, which are cancer chemoprotective (Craig, 1999). Some also contain phenolic compounds (e.g. phenolic acids, flavonoids, quinones, coumarins, lignans, stilbenes, tannins), with significant antioxidant activity (Cai et al., 2004). Many dogs and cats with cancer are older animals. Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 is an inducible enzyme linked to tumor growth and angiogenesis. COX-2 is expressed in mammary tissues during tumorigenesis and its expression is associated with a poorer prognosis in bitches and queens (p=0.03 in dogs and p=0.002 in cats) with invasive mammary tumours. COX-2 overexpression in queens was significantly correlated to estrogen receptor (ER) negative status (Millanta et al., 2006; Langsenlehner et al., 2007). COX-2 immunoreactivity was not seen in healthy tissues, but it was detected in 96% of feline and 100% of canine invasive carcinomas (Millanta et al., 2006). Primary lung tumors are less common than metastatic lung lesions in dogs and cats. Adenocarcinomas account for 70% to 80% of primary pulmonary neoplasia in dogs and cats; less common carcinomas include squamous cell carcinomas and adenosquamous carcinomas (Langlais et al., 2006). Metastasis of primary lung tumors in dogs and cats can occur in other areas of the body.