Some of them have been in use for millennia. This is a tremendous work of scholarship and offers suggestions of the tremendous scope from the world's herbal and natural traditions. No clinical trials performed. It is violently toxic and causes severe hallucinations. Promising as a drug.
Some varieties contain solanine, which is poisonous.
It is one of the herbs in the aforementioned Hoxsey formula. Its alkaloid sanguinarine has been shown to have anticancer activity. The latter compound raises blood pressure. This plant contains cardiotoxic glycosides and is poisonous. The leaves and seeds, widely used around the world, are a folk remedy for cancer in Latin America.