Objective: To evaluate the antitumor effect of BRM, a Chinese traditional medical compound herb, and its mechanism. Methods: Tumor inhibition was tested in vivo on mice with subcutaneous transplanted tumor cells in vitro with and MTT method and tumor cell apoptosis test including cell electric morphology, agarose gel electrophoresis and flow cytometry. Results: It was found that BRM could the resistance to the attack of 5(106 of mouse pancreascarcinoma (MPC-83), Ehrlich ascite tumor (EAC), mouse sarcoma (S-180), and mouse glioblastoma (G422) cells, with the inhibition rate of tumor weight of 66.2%, 50.9%, 47.3%, and 38.7% respectively. The inhibition rate of Suzhou human glioma (SHG-44), human breast carcinoma (MCF-7), and human pancreas carcinoma (PANC1) in vitro were 92.2% (BRM 1:10), 85.1% (BRM 1: 10), 48.3% (BRM 1:10), respectively. Meanwhile, BRM was able to induce apoptosis in several human tumor cell lines such as SHG-44 and MCF-7 cells. Morphological changes including cell shrinkage and condensation of chromosomes were observed with electric microscope. Agarose gel electrophoresis of DNA from SHG-44 and MCF-7 cells treated with BRM extracts (1:80 to 1:20) for 24 h, 40 h revealed typical DNA "Ladder" pattern. The early stage and middle-late stage apoptosis increased in SHG-44 and MCF-7 cells treated with BRM extracts (BRM 1:160 to 1:40) from 14 h to 48 h by Annexin-V/PI flow cytometry one analysis. Conclusion: BRM has obvious antitumor bioactivity in vivo to MPC-83, EAC, S-180, and G422 mouse cell strains, and in vitro to SHG-44, MCF-7 human cell lines. Water extracts of BRM could induce apoptosis.