Comparison of cytotoxic activity of herbal extracts on the most commonly used breast cancer cell lines (MCF7 and SKBR3): A systematic review

Herbal drug development is considered as an imperative part of complementary and alternative medicine. Bioactive compounds of botanical sources represent potential anti-cancer agents for modern therapeutics. Primary in vitro data of herb extracts' effects against cancer cell lines could be considered as indicators of potential toxicity to reduce the number of in vivo experiments. This study aims to review the findings of published articles concerning the in vitro efficacy of herbal extracts against breast cancer cell lines (MCF7 and SKBR3). In vitro studies of herbal extracts published until July 2018 were included in this review. Totally, nine extracts with IC50 <4 exhibited the most inhibitory effect on breast cancer cell lines. This investigation has highlighted the fad that plant extracts have the potential to act as promising anticancer agents, making them appropriate components to be applied for chemoprevention or cancer treatment in case the researchers would find the right plant, the right solvent and the right fraction for the right disease.