Thyroid Tumor
The most common thyroid tumor is thyroid adenoma. It occurs somewhat more frequently in women than men, manifests as a “rock hard” lump or group of lumps on the thyroid, and either leaves thyroid function unaffected or generates a hyperthyroid condition because of the excess growth of thyroid tissue (called toxic adenoma).
Thyroid tumors, like other types of tumors treated by Chinese doctors, are addressed with a wide range of herb formulas. Some examples cited in the Chinese literature published during 1981 to 1986 (formulas cited in An Illustrated Guide to Antineoplastic Chinese Herbal Medicine) are given below.
Luffa Decoction: luffa (30 g), prunella (30 grams), licorice (10 g). [An abstract of the research article was also published in Abstracts of Chinese Medicine]. This formula was given to 30 patients with thyroid adenoma, in the form of decoction, in two divided doses daily for 2 to 3 months. It was claimed that 70% were cured, 20% improved, and 10% failed to respond.
Xiao Ying Tang: prunella (12 g), laminaria and sargassum (12 grams each), sparganium (12 grams), pumice (20 g), tang-kuei (10 g), peony (10 g), fritillaria (10 g), and bupleurum (10 g).
Huangyaozi Decoction: huangyaozi (15 g), sargassum (12 g), laminaria (20 g), fritillaria (10 g), prunella (10 g), oyster shell (30 g), pumice (30 g), citrus (6 g), and blue citrus (6 g).
Thyroid Tumor Formula: oyster shell (30 g), prunella (20 g), polygonum stem (20 g), adenophora (20 g), acorus (15 g), curcuma (15 g), bupleurum (10 g), sparganium (10 g), and zedoaria (10 g)
Jia Liu Wan: prunella (30 g), tang-kuei (30 g), mother of pearl (30 g), oyster shell (30 g), laminaria (15 g), and salvia (15 g). Mixed as powder, made into pills and consumed 9 g b.i.d.. For benign nodular goiter.
With the exception of Luffa Decoction, the above formulas do not differ in any significant way from the formulas used to treat hyperthyroidism, though herbs for treating the secondary effects of hyperthyroidism (e.g., insomnia, heart palpitations) are generally not present when treating the adenomas. Herbs for resolving a “phlegm mass” dominate. Sea materials are present in nearly every one, and prunella is a major ingredient in every prescription. Information about the effectiveness of the above formulas was not immediately available except for that of the Luffa Decoction, for which a high level of cure was claimed. It should be noted that both decoctions (70-150 g per day) and powders made into pills (18 g per day) were used for the purpose of treating thyroid tumors.
A large number of additional formulas of similar nature, prepared in decoction and powder form, are presented in Treating Cancer with Chinese Herbs. Some examples are:
Bao Jin San: pig or sheep thyroid glands (10 pairs), sargassum (60 g), laminaria (60g), clove (6 g), succinum (6 g), saussurea (6 g), musk (3 g), pearl powder (15 g). The ingredients are dried, powdered, and taken in the dose of 1.5 g each time, b.i.d..
Wu Ying Fang: laminaria (30 g), sargassum (60 g), venus shells (60 g), pinellia (9 g), usnea (9g), rice paper (9g), ampelopsis (9 g), asarum (3 g), cucumeroides (3 g), gentiana (3 g), made into decoction.
Unnamed Formula 1: prunella (30 g), huangyaozi (12 g), sargassum (12 g), laminaria (12 g), scrophularia (12 g), earthworm (12 g), and fritillaria (9 g). Taken as a decoction.
Unnamed Formula 2: equal amounts of sargassum, sea univalve, venus shells, cuttlebone, laminaria, gentiana, and aristolochia root. Grind into powder, make pills. Daily dosage is 9 g.
Ying Jie San: fried wheat (1.2 g), usnea (3 g), pinellia (3 g), fritillaria (3 g), sargassum (3 g), gentiana (3 g), venus shells (3 g), rice paper (3 g), laminaria (3 g), and alum (3 g). Grind to powder, take 3 g each time, 3 times daily, with wine.
Like the previously listed prescriptions, these all contain sea materials, and the formulas are made either as high dosage decoctions or pills (in this case, the dosage of the pills is smaller). However, prunella is an ingredient in only one of the five prescriptions, and it is also absent from many other formulas mentioned in this source.
In the book Anticancer Medicinal Herbs, formulas for thyroid tumors include:
Thyroid Adenoma Formula: prunella (20 g), polygonum stem (20 g), oyster shell (30 g), huangyaozi (9 g), curcuma (15g), acorus (15g), adenophora (15 g), bupleurum (10 g), sparganium (10 g), zedoaria (10 g).
Thyroid Cyst Formula: prunella (60 g), salvia (24 g), trichosanthes fruit rind (24 g), laminaria (24 g), sargassum (24 g), cyperus (24 g), iphigenia (24 g), bupleurum (15 g), red peony (18 g), peony (18 g). As follow-up, two ounces each of lean pork and prunella are simmered together and taken every day for some time to reinforce the curative effect.
Thyroid Tumor Formula: solidago (15 g), scutellaria (12 g), kalimera (12 g), lysimachia (24 g). This formula was tried for 53 cases of thyroid tumor and 28 of them were said to be cured after taking the formula for one year.
The above formulas are given by decoction. A formula made into pills for thyroid adenoma is produced by combining 50 grams each of sparganium, chih-ko, curcuma, tang-kuei, salvia, peony, blue citrus, sinapis, and anteater scales, plus 100 grams each of sargassum, laminaria, and prunella, and 150 grams each of zedoaria, dandelion, and oyster shell, plus 25 grams of carthamus. This is taken in pills, about 18 grams per day.
Differential diagnosis and treatment of thyroid tumors is described in the book Cancer Treatment with Fu Zheng Pei Ben Principle. The diagnostic categories are stagnation of phlegm and ying type (cold) mass, yin deficiency and blood stasis type, and qi and blood deficiency type. In each case, a formula is prescribed which contains herbs characteristic of those for treating any thyroid mass (not necessarily a tumor; there are no added anticancer agents). According to the author, “except for undifferentiated carcinoma, the prognosis for thyroid cancer is good.” Using a combination of Western therapies (including surgery as necessary) and Chinese herbs, the 5-year survival rate is 78% to 95%, depending on the cancer type (but only 12.5% to 20% for the undifferentiated type).
