Last October, the Council of Sciences and Technology of the Ministry of Health allowed Crila capsule to be added another indication, treatment for uterine fibroids. Besides, hearing of this news, an American leading expert in cancer flew to Vietnam, shook hands with the woman who uncovered the secrets of Crinum latifolium L. and promised a long-term cooperation.
“2 in 1 capsule”
Exactly two years ago, after Crila capsule (a product totally extracted from Crinum latifolium L.) was officially allowed nationwide circulation by the Drug Administration in Vietnam (the Ministry of Health), Youth Newspaper published numerous series to announce this very pleasing information to aged men – who are facing symptoms that scientists call "benign prostatic hyperplasia".
Readers surely still remember that is a thrilling story that has lasted for 15 years on end of a female pharmacist - Dr. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tram with thousands of experiments and research works from Bulgarian Academy of Science. Then the chains of long days she wandered around all regions of Vietnam to "decode the secrets” and turn Crinum latifolium L. from a traditional medicine into a modern drug with the registered trade name Crila having enough prescribed "legality".
It must be reminded that at that time, Crinum latifolium L. traditionally has been accepted as the medicine for curing ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, etc. in women for a long time and there was a research project at ministerial level ‘Evaluation of the efficacy, safety and drug acceptability of a medicine formulated from Crinum latifolium L. in treating uterine fibroids’, which was conducted by Associate professor – Dr. Nguyen Duc Vy and his colleagues at the National Maternity Hospital and also accepted by the Council of Science and Technology. Crila was only permitted the indication ‘Reducing symptoms of benign prostate hyperplasia (urinary difficulty, lots of urination at night)’on the packaging.
Until the beginning of October, 2007 when the Council of Science and Technology (the Ministry of Health) - led by Prof. Dr. Pham Thanh Ky - officially decided that the project administered by Assoc Prof. Dr. Vuong Tien Hoa to achieve outstanding degree and agreed to offer the Ministry of Health to add uterine fibroids treatment indications to Crila capsule.
A major achievement
Looking back on the long journey of Vietnamese medicine industry, not only enthusiastic scientists but also ordinary physicians could not help concerning about the fact that up to now, almost medicines for human still have to be imported from foreign countries, especially for the two "sensitive” diseases in reproductive organs of both sexes as we just mentioned. If you choose the best treatment - internal medicine (taking drugs), some inevitable difficulties occur. Of the five groups of drugs available in the market for benign prostatic hyperplasia, two kinds are considered having no side effects because they are formulated from herbs but their effects are modest. For uterine fibroids, medications are limited; in numerous cases, female patients have to sacrifice their maternity functions.
To have a good solution for patients, not just from now but in the past several decades, scientists around the world have tried to look for medicinal products from natural, semi-synthetic or chemically synthetic materials ... But so far, no products on domestic and foreign market could gain good effects, reduce tumor size and help patients recover totally. So when the research work and clinical trials of Vietnamese scientists prove that Crila can "apply treatment efficacy over 79% of women with 2-6 cm uterine fibroids” whilst its side effects "are often mild and no need to intervene, that news is good for not only Vietnamese people.
However, Crinum latifolium L. is not a distinct plant. There is a group looking alike. Therefore, Dr. Tram had to spend numerous years and hire experts from the Agricultural Genetics Institute (under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) to study about polymorphism Crinum latifolium L.‘s group to distinguish them by scientific view.
Nowadays, as a chairman of the mission ‘Influence of Crila, alkaloid and flavonoid extracts (fractions) from Vietnamese Crinum latifolium L. on cancer disease as well as on stimulation of the immune system against cancer used as raw materials for producing Vietnamese drugs which treat cancer’ (1 in 46 international cooperation missions in scientific research and technology under the Protocol of the Government from 2007) she and her dedicated colleagues continued going to Sofia University to discover the rest secrets of this valuable medicinal plant.
"Congratulation and praise”
For a long time, scientists have known that benign prostatic hyperplasia in men and uterine fibroids in women are due to endocrine disorder. In addition, the benign prostatic hyperplasia is common in men after 40 while the uterine fibroids is common in women after 35. At the National Maternity Hospital, a scientific project said each year about 1,000 cases of uterine fibroids are treated by surgery, and thousands other cases are received outpatient care. Even in a country having such a modern medicine like the U.S, doctors still annually pity to cut away about 300,000 female uterus and to dissect tumors for 20,000 other women.
When hearing that Crila passed the strict clinical trials to become the capsule for treating these ‘sensitive’ diseases for both genders, Mr. Dou Labriola - a leading expert on U.S. anti-cancer therapy, author of the famous book - Complementary Cancer Therapies - immediately arrived in Vietnam. After shaking hands with Vietnamese female Doctor, he affirmed that her research works and efforts would help a numerous people in the future.
Back to the event at the Ministry of Health on October 1, perhaps it is a big day for herself that she had envisioned and anticipated for almost 2 decades to witness a reputed scientific board gives extra "crown" for her "child".
Actually, at the very opening of his conclusion, Chairman Pham Thanh Ky, on behalf of the council "congratulated and praised her effort (as the inventor of Crila capsule) and Assoc Prof. Dr. Vuong Tien Hoa (as the head of clinical research at ministerial level) in researching, developing and offering useful products from domestic herbal sources to serve the public health.
Commenting on the project "Assessment of the efficacy and acceptability of Crila in treating uterine fibroids", Prof. Dr. Pham Thanh Ky (Chairman of the Council of Science and Technology officially accepted results of the research project at ministerial level) said, ‘The research project has high practicability and suitability to the current situation since uterine fibroids is a common disease. Its result provided safe treatment regimens from domestic pharmaceutical sources. Methods of project research ensure the scientific, objective qualities and reliable results. Regarding products, the capsule is uniform and standard. Regarding price, it is cheaper than imported drugs.