VietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam and China are considered the two biggest rhino horn consumers in the world. 

Rhino horns must not be the remedy for cancer

In Vietnam, rhino horns are used for all kinds of ailments, from alcohol intoxication to cancer. Vietnamese also like to use rhino horn show they are members of the upper class.

The misunderstanding about the uses of rhino horns has led to an increasingly high number of rhinos killed in recent years in South Africa.

According to World Wildlife Fund, 13 rhinos were killed in 2007. The figure soared to 1,215 in 2014. In the first half of 2015, at least 749 rhino deaths were reported in the country.

In India, 107 rhinos were killed in the 2010-2014 period.

It is estimated that there are 20,000 rhinos, both black and white, still living in South Africa, and 2,900 one-horn rhinos in India. 

South Africa and India have the highest numbers of rhinos. Every day, the former loses three rhinos. In Vietnam, the last surviving rhino was killed for horns in 2010. 

In 2011, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the International Rhino Foundation (IRF) announced that one-horn rhino is extinct in Vietnam.

Conservation experts have warned that rhinos may become extinct worldwide in the next six years, if the massacre cannot be stopped soon.

A survey conducted by TRAFFIC, a non-government organization, showed that 90 percent of rhino horns sold in Vietnam are counterfeit.

Rhino horn uses 

In Oriental Medicine rhino horn is listed in the group of medicines with detoxification effects. However, the effect can be found in other simple medicines which have lower costs and better results.

According to Prof Dr Nguyen Chan Hung, chair of the Vietnam Cancer Association, medical researchers have confirmed that rhino horn powder has no effect in cancer treatment.

“Patients should follow modern remedies prescribed by physicians instead of relying on rhino horns. If you blindly use rhino horns to treat cancer, you will miss the best opportunities to treat cancer effectively with modern methods,” Hung said.

Truong Thi Ngoc Lan from the HCM City Traditional Medicine Institute said that in Oriental Medicine rhino horn is listed in the group of medicines with detoxification effects. However, the effect can be found in other simple medicines which have lower costs and better results.

Le Hung, chair of the HCM City Oriental Medicine Association, has recommended taking rhino horn out of the list of drugs in order to prevent misconceptions about the alleged effects.

Le Ngoc Thanh from the HCM City Traditional Medicine Institute said that rhino horn is prescribed as a component in some remedies, but is not used as a single drug. 

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