In April this year, botanists ascertained that at least twenty herbs in Kenya are possible inhibitors to many forms of cancer. According to the researchers, there are now a number of barks from herbal trees that have upgraded from being traditional medicine to possible modern medicine. The same applies to fruits like tamarind and leaves from most other plants.

The researchers from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) together with others found out that such herbs as oleifera (drumstick), which are still under tests, have a differing effectiveness against diseases of the cells. The tamarind berries, for instance, have undergone tests of their extracts in the country to reveal that they can overcome reproductive cell diseases including cervical, breast and prostrate cancers. The same applies to pearl millet, which is also popular as a tumor combating herb that can auger well with women with breast tumors.

The upshot of the scientific breakthrough that herbs can treat tumors, though not internationally embraced, is a step ahead for Kenya-based researchers and herbalists who may yet gain an open door to further their claims. For instance, Central, Western and Rift Valley herbalists have for a long time affirmed that black wattle which produces milky stuff may be a probable preventative or combative measure against cancer. There are many locals who have been wary about seeking medical aid from herbalists, but with these confirmations coming through, it might now be possible to seek remedies that are traditional in nature from hospitals.

One of the tests involved two unnamed herbal trees that, according to Jecinta Ndung’u from Rongo University seemed to curtail the progress of the three typical cancers in women. This derived from the fact that they presented the same level of effectiveness as Tamofixen, a breast tumor treatment, thus confirming the likelihood that they do really possess the abilities of modern drugs.

This news comes even at a time when June 2017 saw the beginning of a herbal garden in Kenya with ties to famous Chinese equivalents, dedicated to the growth and preservation of miraculous plants. The Sino-Africa herbal orchard began in 2014 through the auspices of the Deputy President of Kenya, and started operating in September 2016. However, it was not until June this year that the station inside JKUAT at the China Africa Joint Research Centre, has show its full bloom.

With Mr Gitaru, the founder of the joint herbal garden reflecting that about 90% of modern medicines come from plant extracts, it is now time that one gave more eye to herbs.

Herbs have been a traditional laxative for millennia, ranging from China with its hundreds of botanical gardens, across Egypt with its Roman times’ fame and now new countries like Kenya are coming into the map with such conventional botanical gardens.