Traditional Medicinal Knowledge about Herbs used in Treatment of Cancer in Chhattisgarh, India. XXXVIII. Uses of Kadam (Anthocephalus cadamba).
At initial stages of mouth cancer the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh Plains suggest the patients to use the decoction prepared from the Kadam bark in form of gargle many times in a day. The healers claim that they have treated many such cases successfully with the help of this simple formulation. It was really surprising information for me. When I met the patients benefited by this simple treatment their encouraging replies motivated me to put this formulation among the world community. The healers informed that in order to hide its identity they use the bark in combination with other herbs. Kadam bark collected from any tree is not considered useful. The traditional healers invest much time in selection of potential tree. They select old tree having specific fungal disease. Before collection of bark they irrigate the trees with specific herbal extracts up to long time. In general the treatment starts fifteen days before the collection of bark. I have written a lot on this Traditional Allelopathic Knowledge in my previous articles. The healers also worship the trees and utter mantras before the collection of bark. It is collected at specific time and on specific day. Night time is preferred for the collection of bark .You will be surprised to know that the traditional healers treat the tree even after the collection of bark in order to help the tree to recover from injuries. Although the modern researchers give little importance to the mantras, herbal extracts and worship but the traditional healers have deep faith in these practices. They believe that due to their sincere efforts and traditional practice they get bark with maximum potential. They do not use the bark available in market. They claim that the barks available in markets are not collected by adopting traditional methods. This is the reason it fails to give the desirable results. Kadam bark is not used for other types of cancer. Also other herbs are not added in it during preparation of decoction.
Kadam is well known tree of medicinal and religious importance in Chhattisgarh. It is planted in roadsides for the purpose of shade. It is much liked by birds. The natives use its different parts in form of home remedies whereas the traditional healers use it both internally as well as externally in treatment of common diseases. I have observed during the surveys that the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh having expertise in treatment of different types of cancer use Kadam plant parts as medicine. Through interactions with them I have collected much information on this aspect.
In general the traditional healers suggest the patients having liver cancer to never miss the chance of consuming Kadam fruits during growing season. According to them the fruits help the patients to fight with cancer in more efficient way. It also helps in spread of cancer to some extent. Although the fruits can be used in form of Murabba in off-season also but the traditional healers are not in favor of its off-season use. They informed that for other season the Mother Nature has given us other herbs. The fruits are given as supplement treatment along with main treatment of liver cancer.
The traditional healers of Bilaspur region use the dry leaves of Kadam in treatment of cancer. The leaves are used internally. The healers collect the leaves and after shade drying the leaves are converted into powder. The powder is mixed with other herbs and the combination is kept for future use. The healers informed that the dry leaves are having immense potential to give great relief to the patients but the leaves are not used alone. The traditional healers of Jashpur region use the roots in same way. The roots are used in combination with other herbs in treatment of blood cancer. The healers have deep faith in this use. The roots of young plants are taken. Kadam trees growing near Khamhar (Gmelina arborea) trees are not considered suitable for the collection of roots. The healers treat the trees with herbal extracts before the collection of roots. They collect the roots very carefully so that this collection can not damage the whole plant.
The traditional healers of Gandai-Salewara region informed that the sweet scented flowers of Kadam can be used externally in form of aqueous extract in treatment of cancerous wounds. It is used to remove foul smell. The healers also suggest all the patients having cancer to take Kadam sprouts daily as sprouts are considered very beneficial for them.
The healers of present generations informed that earlier there were many healers using Kadam plant parts for cancer treatment. They kept their knowledge secret and as result we have lost all the knowledge with them. I am trying to document all the available information in form of research articles in order to protect it for future generations.