title: Curcumin and its promise as an anticancer drug: An analysis of its anticancer and antifungal effects in cancer and associated complications from invasive fungal infections.
abstract: Invasive fungal infections (IFI) are important complications of cancer, and they have become a major cause of morbidity and mortality in cancer patients. Effective anti-infection therapy is necessary to inhibit significant deterioration from these infections. However, they are difficult to treat, and increasing antifungal drug resistance often leads to a relapse. Curcumin, a natural component that is isolated from the rhizome of Curcuma longa plants, has attracted great interest among many scientists studying solid cancers over the last half century. Interestingly, curcumin provides an ideal alternative to current therapies because of its relatively safe profile, even at high doses. To date, curcumin's potent antifungal activity against different strains of Candida, Cryptococcus, Aspergillus, Trichosporon and Paracoccidioides have been reported, indicating that curcumin anticancer drugs may also possess an antifungal role, helping cancer patients to resist IFI complications. The aim of this review is to discuss curcumin's dual pharmacological activities regarding its applications as a natural anticancer and antifungal agent. These dual pharmacological activities are expected to lead to clinical trials and to improve infection survival among cancer patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei 230011, Anhui, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: eyyxs2013@aliyun.com.
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei 230011, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zheng-Min
authors.initials: ZM
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei 230011, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Feng-Ling
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei 230011, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zheng-Sheng
authors.initials: ZS
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei 230011, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xiu-zhen
authors.initials: XZ
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei 230011, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Dan-Dan
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Zhai
authors.affiliation: The Pharmacokinetics Lab, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei 230012, Anhui, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: anzhongdong@126.com.
authors.forename: Wei-Dong
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003474:Curcumin / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006801:Humans; D009181:Mycoses / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D003474:Curcumin
keywords: Anticancer activity; Antifungal activity; Curcumin; Invasive fungal infections