This ethnobotanical investigation explored native healing herbs for anticancer efficacy in Kerala’s Wayanad and Kozhikode districts. Insights were gathered from various stakeholders, including spice dealers, exporters, Ayurveda practitioners, tribal communities, and farmers, through discussions, interviews, and questionnaires from February 2021 to August 2022. Field expeditions to tribal settlements yielded crucial data on botanical nomenclature, common identifiers, vernacular names, traditional applications, and anecdotal applications. Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review incorporated a meta-analysis of 311 articles from Ovid Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed. Results showed a significant overall effect (p-value 0.001), variable subgroup effectiveness (RR = 0.4118, p 0.009), and study-related impacts (p = 0.4837). Reliability was confirmed through sensitivity testing with negligible bias (p > 0.05). Despite notable unexplained heterogeneity (I² = 87.82%, H² = 8.21), the study emphasized the statistical significance of the selected medicinal plants. This investigation advances the ethnobotanical knowledge of Malabar’s anticancer herbs, underscoring the imperative for future research to exploit their therapeutic potential. It serves as pivotal groundwork for future developments in herbal medicine.
Key words: Anticancer, Ayurveda, Folklore uses, Medicinal plants, Phyto constituents, Tribal communities, Meta analysis.
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