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Jennifer Donkin
A friend has a cervical polyp that will be surgically removed in a few weeks with leep and a d and c to rule out cancer; she asked me if I knew of any herbs she could take before and/or after the surgery to help with healing and possible prevention of more polyps. Any experience or suggestions on this would be appreciated.
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Dr. Patrick Jones
Don’t have her do anything herbal for a week or two before surgery.
The surgery itself, will cause very little tissue damage. Polyps are pedunculated little fellows (growing on stalks) and are therefore pretty easy to snip off. I don’t think she’ll need help healing it up. Mucus membrane tissues heal really quickly.
As to prevention, there isn’t much in Western herbalism that has been shown to prevent or reduce polyps. Ayurvedic medicine (India) has a couple of protocols that have been researched and showed some promise but the studies were pretty small and more research really ought to be done.
Here are the studies:
The first study was published in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology India in 2011. The title of the study is “Clinical evaluation of Ayurvedic herbal formulation in the treatment of cervical polyps: a pilot study.” It evaluated the use of a herbal formulation containing ashoka (Saraca asoca), lodhra (Symplocos racemosa), and haritaki (Terminalia chebula) in the treatment of cervical polyps. The study found that the herbal formulation was effective in reducing the size of the polyps and improving symptoms in the majority of the women who received the treatment.
The second study was published in the Journal of Mid-life Health in 2013. The title of the study is “Clinical evaluation of Ayurvedic herbal formulation in the treatment of cervical polyps.”
It evaluated the use of a herbal formulation containing ashoka (Saraca asoca), lodhra (Symplocos racemosa), haritaki (Terminalia chebula), and gokshura (Tribulus terrestris) in the treatment of cervical polyps. The study found that the herbal formulation was effective in reducing the size of the polyps and improving symptoms in the majority of the women who received the treatment.
It is important to note that I haven’t read the actual studies, just the abstracts above so I don’t know if they were good studies. I do know they were small studies so more research is needed.
Also, I’m not familiar with any of the plant species in those studies except the gokshura (Tribulus terrestris) which we call puncture vine. Puncture vine has narrower safety margins than most herbs.
Don't use herbs or combine herbs with medications or use them during lactation or pregnancy without talking with your healthcare provider.
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Jill Overstreet
I am very thankful for the student forum and the ability to do searches there. I had this very question and because I was able to listen in on your conversation, I have the answer now. Thanks for making it available. It’s a great learning tool!
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Thanks Doc, that helps. I’ll pass this information along.
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