In vitro and in vivo antitumor evaluation of berbamine for lung cancer treatment.

PURPOSE Lung cancer, one of the most frequently diagnosed cancers in the world, is characterized by relatively high morbidity and mortality. Berbamine (BER) has been initially reported to exert anti-proliferative effects against a series of cancers. METHODS In this study the in vitro cytotoxicity of BER was measured by MTT assay. In vivo anti-cancer efficacy of BER was assessed in A549 xenografts. RESULTS Cytotoxicity tests showed dose-dependent cell growth inhibition effects of BER against A549 cells. Moreover, BER significantly reduced the growth of lung cancer in a dose-dependent manner in nude mice with prolonged survival time. CONCLUSION Therefore, BER might be in herbal medicine for cancer therapy and further efforts are needed to explore therapeutic strategies.