Realgar/Indigo naturalis

Realgar/Indigo naturalis (RIF), also known as Compound Huangdai (复方黄黛), is a medication used to treat <a href="/facts/Acute_promyelocytic_leukemia/dFxwxHoX">acute promyelocytic leukemia</a>. Effectiveness appears similar to <a href="/facts/Arsenic_trioxide/YhlrDAg7">arsenic trioxide</a>. It is generally used together with <a href="/facts/All-trans-retinoic_acid/DjthvC01">all-trans-retinoic acid</a> (ATRA). It is taken <a href="/facts/Oral_administration/vNQcvLVx">by mouth</a>.
Side effects may include abdominal pain and rash. It is made up of a combination of <a href="/facts/Realgar/k0YS1f6G">realgar</a> (tetra-arsenic tetra-sulfide), <a href="/facts/Indigo_naturalis/XXgI1spP">Indigo naturalis</a>, <a href="/facts/Radix_salviae_miltiorrhizae/Mpq7YARX">root of Salvia miltiorrhiza</a>, and <a href="/facts/Radix_pseudostellariae/IBuCDDNH">root of Pseudostellaria heterophylla</a>. It works by breaking down the cancer protein <a href="/facts/Retinoic_acid_receptor_alpha/KPJoX9MP">retinoic acid receptor alpha</a>. The main active ingredients according to NCI are tetraarsenic tetrasulfide (realgar), indirubin (from the indigo) and <a href="/facts/Tanshinone/kXU72TuS">tanshinone</a> IIA (from the Salvia).
Realgar-Indigo naturalis was developed in the 1980s and approved for medical use in China in 2009. It is on the <a href="/facts/WHO_Model_List_of_Essential_Medicines/6kmu81Xm">World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines</a>. It is made in China and was originally formulated as a <a href="/facts/Chinese_patent_medicine/m6vzHazU">Chinese patent medicine</a>. It is not approved in either the United States or Europe as of 2019<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Realgar/Indigo_naturalis&action=edit">[update]</a>. A year of treatment costs 60,000 <a href="/facts/Chinese_yuan/513xLnrK">Chinese yuan</a>, as of 2017.

Realgar/Indigo naturalis open-in-new

Realgar/Indigo naturalis