title: The multifaceted role of curcumin in cancer prevention and treatment.
abstract: Despite significant advances in treatment modalities over the last decade, neither the incidence of the disease nor the mortality due to cancer has altered in the last thirty years. Available anti-cancer drugs exhibit limited efficacy, associated with severe side effects, and are also expensive. Thus identification of pharmacological agents that do not have these disadvantages is required. Curcumin, a polyphenolic compound derived from turmeric (Curcumin longa), is one such agent that has been extensively studied over the last three to four decades for its potential anti-inflammatory and/or anti-cancer effects. Curcumin has been found to suppress initiation, progression, and metastasis of a variety of tumors. These anti-cancer effects are predominantly mediated through its negative regulation of various transcription factors, growth factors, inflammatory cytokines, protein kinases, and other oncogenic molecules. It also abrogates proliferation of cancer cells by arresting them at different phases of the cell cycle and/or by inducing their apoptosis. The current review focuses on the diverse molecular targets modulated by curcumin that contribute to its efficacy against various human cancers.
authors: Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore. phcsmk@nus.edu.sg.
authors: Muthu K
authors: MK
authors: Shanmugam
authors: Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore. a0095676@nus.edu.sg.|Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, Centre for Translational Medicine, 14 Medical Drive, #11-01M, Singapore 117599, Singapore. a0095676@nus.edu.sg.
authors: Grishma
authors: G
authors: Rane
authors: Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, Centre for Translational Medicine, 14 Medical Drive, #11-01M, Singapore 117599, Singapore. csikmm@nus.edu.sg.
authors: Madhu Mathi
authors: MM
authors: Kanchi
authors: School of Biomedical Sciences, CHIRI Biosciences Research Precinct, Curtin University, Western Australia 6009, Australia. frank.arfuso@uwa.edu.au.
authors: Frank
authors: F
authors: Arfuso
authors: Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia. dr.arunmicro@gmail.com.
authors: Arunachalam
authors: A
authors: Chinnathambi
authors: Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia. mozayed@ksu.edu.sa.
authors: M E
authors: ME
authors: Zayed
authors: Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia. sharbi@ksu.edu.sa.
authors: Sulaiman Ali
authors: SA
authors: Alharbi
authors: Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore. benny_tan@nuhs.edu.sg.
authors: Benny K H
authors: BK
authors: Tan
authors: Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore. csiapk@nus.edu.sg.|Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, Centre for Translational Medicine, 14 Medical Drive, #11-01M, Singapore 117599, Singapore. csiapk@nus.edu.sg.|School of Biomedical Sciences, CHIRI Biosciences Research Precinct, Curtin University, Western Australia 6009, Australia. csiapk@nus.edu.sg.|Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203, USA. csiapk@nus.edu.sg.
authors: Alan Prem
authors: AP
authors: Kumar
authors: Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore. phcgs@nus.edu.sg.|School of Biomedical Sciences, CHIRI Biosciences Research Precinct, Curtin University, Western Australia 6009, Australia. phcgs@nus.edu.sg.|Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia. phcgs@nus.edu.sg.
authors: Gautam
authors: G
authors: Sethi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects*; D003474:Curcumin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; D003474:Curcumin