An Effective TCM Formula Used by a Patient with Radiation Enteritis
A cervical-cancer patient who recently consulted me developed radiation enteritis after radiotherapy. She had previously seen a TCM physician locally. That physician, although he could not solve her cancer problem, very effectively solved her radiation-enteritis problem.
The prescription this physician wrote was extraordinary; I myself would not dare prescribe like that. The prescription: Gegen (Pueraria) 120 g, Fuzi (Aconite) 6 g, Fangfeng (Saposhnikovia) 9 g, Huanglian (Coptis) 10 g, Jiangtan (Ginger charcoal) 30 g, Banxia (Pinellia) 60 g, Huangqin (Scutellaria) 15 g, Guizhi (Cinnamon twig) 15 g, Shengjiang (Fresh ginger) 30 g, Zhi Gancao (Honey-fried Licorice) 10 g, Chuanjiao (Sichuan pepper) 10 g, Chuan Huangbai (Phellodendron) 15 g, Xixin (Asarum) 9 g, Wumei (Mume) 30 g, Xianhecao (Agrimonia) 45 g, Renshen (Ginseng) 10 g, Huangqi (Astragalus) 60 g, Danggui (Angelica) 6 g, Sanxian Tan (each of the three charred digestants) 30 g each, Zhiqiao (Bitter orange) 30 g.
This formula is built on Wumei Wan with modifications. The “three charred digestants” are maiya (barley sprout), shanzha (hawthorn) and shenqu (medicated leaven), fried into charcoal. TCM holds that frying certain herbs to charcoal enhances their hemostatic effect. The main symptoms of radiation enteritis are, first, diarrhea and, second, bloody stool, so both the jiangtan and the sanxian tan in this formula were fried to charcoal for hemostasis; jiangtan is dried ginger stir-fried into charcoal. To make herbs into charcoal, one generally stir-fries them in a pan until carbonized; if the herb catches fire, douse it with water.
Wumei Wan is an excellent antidiarrheal formula. The wumei (Mume) in it is sour and warm; it both calms roundworms and astringes the intestines to stop dysentery, serving as the chief herb. Huajiao (Sichuan pepper) and xixin (Asarum) are acrid and warm: acrid can quiet roundworms, warmth can dispel cold; together they are deputy herbs. Fuzi (Aconite), ganjiang (Dried ginger) and guizhi (Cinnamon twig) are the three great yang-supporting herbs, warming the viscera and dispelling cold; renshen (Ginseng) and danggui (Angelica) nourish qi and blood. Huanglian and huangbai clear heat and dry dampness, stop diarrhea and dysentery. Thus Wumei Wan is a formula that uses both cold and heat, with the functions of moderating the liver and regulating the middle, clearing above and warming below; ancients used it for vomiting roundworms and diarrhea.
This physician added gegen to Wumei Wan and used it heavily; gegen raises yang and stops diarrhea. The dose of banxia (Pinellia) in this formula is also astonishing—ordinary physicians would not dare prescribe it, and most pharmacies would not dare dispense banxia in that quantity. Xianhecao (Agrimonia) both stops bleeding and supplements blood, and also stops diarrhea and dysentery; using 45 g here also exceeds the usual dose. Zhiqiao (Bitter orange) moves qi and broadens the middle, moving stagnation and dispersing distension; it is also used in the Huaihua San for intestinal wind with bleeding, but using 30 g here is likewise uncommon.
This formula looks risky, but this patient’s results were excellent: after only a few doses, her radiation enteritis was brought under control. Honestly, I have myself treated radiation enteritis, but never achieved such good results. Radiation enteritis is an extremely intractable sequela of radiotherapy, with no good solution in either Chinese or Western medicine; some patients suffer from it for life. That this physician’s prescription produced immediate results shows his prescribing was truly masterly. So, presuming to step forward, I publish this empirical formula for readers willing to study radiation enteritis.