Curcumin as an Anticancer Agent in Malignant Mesothelioma: A Review

Abstract

Malignant mesothelioma is an infrequent tumor that initiates from the mesothelial cells lining of body cavities. The great majority of mesotheliomas originate in the pleural cavity, while the remaining cases initiate in the peritoneal cavity, in the pericardial cavity or on the tunica vaginalis. Usually, mesotheliomas grow in a diffuse pattern and tend to enclose and compress the organs in the various body cavities. Mesothelioma incidence is increasing worldwide and still today, the prognosis is very poor, with a reported median survival of approximately one year from presentation. Thus, the development of alternative and more effective therapies is currently an urgent requirement. The aim of this review article was to describe recent findings about the anti-cancer activity of curcumin and some of its derivatives on mesotheliomas. The potential clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords: curcumin; mesothelioma; phytochemical; piperine; therapy.

Figure 1

The chemical structure of curcumin.

Figure 2

The most important in vitro and in vivo effects of curcumin in MM cells are depicted.