REVIEW

Curcumin: A Modulator of Mammary Malignancies

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among females and accounts for around 25% of all female melanomas worldwide with increasing incidence every day. Among various natural phytochemicals studied against breast cancer, curcumin has been found to possess antioxidative properties with established safety record. Curcumin is a pleiotropic molecule possessing chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic properties. Curcumin arrests cancer formation at various stages ranging from transformation, proliferation as well as invasion. Transformation is arrested by constitutive de-activation of transcription factors like STAT 3, AP-1, NF-kB. Curcumin controls the expressions of oncogenes, growth factor like EGF, PGDF, FGF, decoy receptors, cyclin D1, survival factors that are important for tumoral cell proliferation. Curcumin successfully inhibits tumor metastasis by supressing the expression of matrix metalloproteinase, COX 2, adhesion molecules, Chemokines and TNF.

Curcumin has revealed anticancerous effects in synergism with various compounds like piperine, genistein, mitomycin C, phosphatidicholine, monomethoxy polyethylene glycol, epigallocatechin gallate and metformin. Recent studies have attempted to study the efficacy of curcumin loaded nanoparticles as drug delivery system.

This paper attempts to review the work on antitumoral effects of curcumin against breast cancer, underlying mechanisms and proposes further investigations that are needed for rational cancer therapy.