Common weed sap may treat non melanoma skin cancer

The British Journal of Dermatology experts are reporting that sap from the common garden weed petty spurge may treat your non-melanoma skin cancer.

But they tell patients that it is not wise to try this weed sap at home. Because the treatment is still experiment and it can irritate the skin.

Their study involved 36 patients with non-melanoma skin cancer Sap from the common garden weed petty spurge.

Although not the most serious form of skin cancer, non-melanoma lesions are very common, accounting for a third of all cancers detected in the UK.

They include basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and usually occur in older people.

Most cases of non-melanoma skin cancer can be easily treated and cured with surgical removal or freezing, or using a special kind of light therapy that kills the cancer cells.

The plant weed petty spurge sap has been used for centuries as a traditional medicine, and it is native and common throughout Britain. The researchers wanted to put it through its paces in a proper clinical trial.

Source: BBC news

At a glance

What is Non melanoma ski?

Most skin cancers are classified as non-melanomas, usually starting in either basal cells or squamous cells. These cells are located at the base of the outer layer of the skin or cover the internal and external surfaces of the body.
Most non-melanoma skin cancers develop on sun-exposed areas of the body, like the face, ear, neck, lips, and the backs of the hands. Depending on the type, they can be fast or slow growing, but they rarely spread to other parts of the body.
Basal cell or squamous cell cancers are highly likely to be cured if detected and treated early.

What are the risk factors for skin cancer?

Risk factors for non-melanoma and melanoma skin cancers include:

• Unprotected and/or excessive exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation
• Fair complexion
• Occupational exposures to coal tar, pitch, creosote, arsenic compounds, or radium
• Family history
• Multiple or atypical moles
• Severe sunburns as a child

What are the signs and symptoms of skin cancer?

Skin cancer can be found early, and both doctors and patients play important roles in finding skin cancer. If you have any of the following symptoms, tell your doctor.

• Any change on the skin, especially in the size or color of a mole or other darkly pigmented growth or spot, or a new growth
• Scaliness, oozing, bleeding, or change in the appearance of a bump or nodule
• The spread of pigmentation beyond its border such as dark coloring that spreads past the edge of a mole or mark
• A change in sensation, itchiness, tenderness, or pain

Source: American cancer society