Taxus - the panacea for cancer treatment.

Cancer has been major challenge for healthcare sector for a long time. The use of chemotherapy and radiation therapy has its obvious side effects. The scientists have been looking to natural remedies for the treatment of cancer. There have been significant discoveries in this direction such as Vinblastine the plant alkaloids. Recent discovery of Taxol a diterpenoid obtained form Taxus species has opened new vistas in the treatment of cancer and can be considered a major break through. This article is an attempt to overview the various aspects such as biological & geographical sources, active principles, mechanism of action, extraction, isolation, estimation and traditional uses of Taxol.