Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Psychiatry. Apr 19, 2026; 16(4): 115981
Published online Apr 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v16.i4.115981
Published online Apr 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v16.i4.115981
Chinese herbal formulas alleviated depression in breast cancer patients: A meta-analysis, network pharmacology and experimental validation
Shi-Cui Hong, State Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Syndrome, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510000, Guangdong Province, China
Yu-Yi Du, Gui-Bin Wang, Sheng-Qi Wang, Yi-Feng Zheng, Hong-Lin Situ, Zhi-Yu Wang, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510000, Guangdong Province, China
Neng Wang, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510000, Guangdong Province, China
Author contributions: Hong SC, Wang N, Situ HL, and Wang ZY contributed to the conception, methodology and interpretation; Hong SC, Du YY, Wang GB, Wang SQ, and Zheng YF contributed to statistical analysis and data collection; Hong SC and Wang ZY contributed to writing.
Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 82374446, No. 82174165, and No. 82474512; the State Key Laboratory of Dampness Syndrome of Chinese Medicine, No. SZ2021ZZ19; Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province, No. 2022B1515230002 and No. 2023B1212060063; Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Lab on Chinese Medicine and Immune Disease Research, No. 2020B1212030006; Guangzhou Science and Technology Project, No. 2025CX009 and No. 2023A03J0236; Guangdong Traditional Chinese Medicine Bureau Project, No. 20231143; and the Specific Research Fund for CHF Science and Technology of Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine, No. YN2023MS31.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Corresponding author: Zhi-Yu Wang, MD, PhD, Full Professor, Principal Investigator, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, No. 111 Dade Road, Guangzhou 510000, Guangdong Province, China. wangzhiyu@gzucm.edu.cn
Received: October 31, 2025
Revised: December 16, 2025
Accepted: January 15, 2026
Published online: April 19, 2026
Processing time: 151 Days and 0 Hours
Revised: December 16, 2025
Accepted: January 15, 2026
Published online: April 19, 2026
Processing time: 151 Days and 0 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: In present study, we found that Chinese herbal formulas outperformed antidepressants in reducing depression and improving quality of life, significantly elevated monoamine neurotransmitter levels, and selectively increased CD4+ T-cell counts. Network pharmacology revealed that Si-Ni-San may modulate immune responses and serotonergic synapses, while experimental validation indicated involvement of CD4+ T cells and rebalancing of neurotransmitter, tryptophan metabolism. These results advocate for the integration of Chinese herbal formulas especially Si-Ni-San into integrative care protocols for breast cancer-related depression and underscore the need for further mechanistic and clinical investigation.