State of the Art and Future Implications of SH003: Acting as a Therapeutic Anticancer Agent

Abstract

Cancer ranks as the first leading cause of death globally. Despite the various types of cancer treatments, negative aspects of the treatments, such as side effects and drug resistance, have been a continuous dilemma for patients. Thus, natural compounds and herbal medicines have earned profound interest as chemopreventive agents for reducing burden for patients. SH003, a novel herbal medicine containing Astragalus membranaceus, Angelica gigas, and Trichosanthes kirilowii, showed the potential to act as an anticancer agent in previous research studies. A narrative review was conducted to present the significant highlights of the total 15 SH003 studies from the past nine years. SH003 has shown positive results in both in vivo and vitro studies against various types of cancer cells; furthermore, the first clinical trial was performed to identify the maximum tolerated dose among solid cancer patients. So far, the potential of SH003 as a chemotherapeutic agent has been well-documented in research studies; continuous work on SH003’s efficacy and safety is required to facilitate better cancer patient care but is part of the knowledge needed to understand whether SH003 has the potential to become a pharmaceutical.

Metabolomic Analysis of Exosomes Derived from Lung Cancer Cell Line H460 Treated with SH003 and Docetaxel

“…SH003 is a novel herbal mixture for the treatment of several cancers including nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. The molecular mechanism of SH003 in cancer inhibition is associated with both the induction of cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, and autophagy and the suppression of tumor angiogenesis [26]. Recently, we demonstrated that SH003 is a good partner to combine with docetaxel, a conventional chemotherapy medication, for the treatment of NSCLC patients [15].…”

Current Characteristics of Herbal Medicine Interventions for Cancer on Clinical Databases: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…SH003 is a decoction of medicinal herbs consisting of Astragalus membranaceus, Angelica gigas, Trichosanthes Kirilowii. 62 PHY906 is a decoction of a mixture of 4-herbs, Scutellarin baicalensis Georgi, Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch, Paeonia lactiflora Pall, and Ziziphus jujuba Mill. 63 Besides, the aforementioned trials investigated DaHuang GanTsao Tang, Maekmoondong-tang, Xiang Bei Yang Rong Tang, Sheng-Yu-Tang, and others.…”

A comprehensive review of antitumor properties of Angelica species and their antitumor‐responsible constituents and the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in tumor inhibition

“…SH003 is a herbal mixture of Astragalus membranaceus , A . gigas , and trichosanthes Kirilowii , which are traditionally used in East Asian medicine and its first phase l clinical trial (NCT03081819 and NCT04360317) was performed to identify the maximum tolerated dose in patients with solid (maximum tolerated dose for SH003 administration alone confirmed the daily safe dose to be up to 4800 mg) (Lee et al, 2022). Another preparation of A .…”

“…SH003 is a herbal mixture of Astragalus membranaceus, A. gigas, and trichosanthes Kirilowii, which are traditionally used in East Asian medicine and its first phase l clinical trial (NCT03081819 and NCT04360317) was performed to identify the maximum tolerated dose in patients with solid (maximum tolerated dose for SH003 administration alone confirmed the daily safe dose to be up to 4800 mg) (Lee et al, 2022). Another preparation of A. gigas along with nine other herbs was tested clinically in two male cancer patients in Korea which remarkably suppressed the prostate cancer antigen (PSA) response patient and improved the quality of life for both (Lü et al, 2022).…”