Stony Brook School of Medicine Study Links Toxic Component in Herbal Remedies to Kidney Failure and Cancer

Aristolochic acid (AA), a component of a plant used in herbal remedies since ancient times, leads to kidney failure and upper urinary tract cancer (UUC) in individuals exposed to the toxin. In a study of 151 UUC patients in Taiwan -- where the incidence of UUC is the highest reported anywhere in the world and where Aristolochia herbal remedies have been widely used- Arthur Grollman, M.D., Distinguished Professor of Pharmacological Sciences, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, and an international team of scientists, conclude that exposure to AA is a primary contributor to the incidence of UUC in Taiwan.