Oleander

What it is used for

• Cancer: drugs and supportive care

  Limited

  A patented hot-water leaf extract (Anvirzel) containing oleandrin has been injected in people and analysed in plasma, and cardiac glycosides as a class are being studied as cancer drugs in the laboratory. No trial has shown benefit, and the plant is lethal.^4,5

Safety

Active compounds

oleandrin

cardiac glycoside that inhibits the Na+/K+-ATPase pump; cross-reacts with digoxin blood tests

neriifolin and other cardiac glycosides

contribute to toxicity

History

Oleander poisoning is a common toxicological emergency in tropical and subtropical countries. A 1985 report of a death from oleander tea first suggested that digoxin antibody fragments might save lives in such cases; a later review found them effective.

Sources

1. 1.Bandara V et al. A review of the natural history, toxinology, diagnosis and clinical management of Nerium oleander (common oleander) and Thevetia peruviana (yellow oleander) poisoning. Toxicon 2010
2. 2.Haynes BE et al. Oleander tea: herbal draught of death. Ann Emerg Med 1985
3. 3.Wasfi IA et al. A fatal case of oleandrin poisoning. Forensic Sci Int 2008
4. 4.Wang X et al. LC/MS/MS analyses of an oleander extract for cancer treatment. Anal Chem 2000
5. 5.Newman RA et al. Cardiac glycosides as novel cancer therapeutic agents. Mol Interv 2008
6. 6.Mantelli G et al. Laurel but Hardy: unintended poisoning, a case report of oleander misidentification as bay laurel. Toxicol Rep 2023

Reference, not prescription. Nothing here is medical advice. Herbs can interact with medicines and be dangerous in pregnancy; tell your doctor or pharmacist about anything you take.