Unclear
Hoxsey herbal therapy
an herbal tonic and caustic skin paste. Claimed cures.
Also called or includes: Hoxsey herbal formula, Hoxsey therapy
Safety: The paste has caused severe burns, scars and disfigurement. The tonic's ingredients include laxatives, licorice, which can upset heart rhythm and potassium, and pokeweed, which has caused hospital stays and deaths in children.
- Verdict
- UnclearThere isn't enough human evidence to say either way.
- How sure
- Rung 1 · UnprovenLab or animal data only, or never directly tested in people.
The rung shows how sure the science is, not how big the effect is. How to read these ratings
Cancers affected
None
What the evidence shows
Memorial Sloan Kettering says the tonic has never been tested in the lab, in animals or in people, and that attempts to study patients treated at clinics in Mexico failed because records were poor. The American Cancer Society strongly urges people with cancer not to use it.
What to do
Don't use it.
Sources
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Related
Every myth and exposure we rated, or follow one cancer step by step: breast cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer and prostate cancer.