Placlitaxel is derived from a naturally occurring compound found in the bark of Pacific yew trees. It was originally discovered by a funded screening programme, the US National Cancer Institute, in 1962. Paclitaxol was commercially by Bristol-Myers Squibb, the generic name has changed to "paclitaxel" with a trademark becoming Taxol.
1971 scientists had established that Taxol displayed some promise as an anticancer agent. However, there was great reluctance to even harvest enough for clinical trials. In 1977, an order for 7,000 pounds of bark was made. This meant killing 1,500 trees, scattered in patches over millions of acres of old growth forests in the Pacific Northwest. This coincided with and became enmeshed in the debate over the spotted
