Title:Assessment of Combination Approaches of Phytoconstituents with Chemotherapy for the Treatment of Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review
Volume: 27
Issue: 45
Author(s): Ali Sartaj, Sanjula Baboota and Javed Ali*
Affiliation:
- Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi-110062,India
Keywords:
Breast cancer, phytoconstituent, chemotherapy, combination approach, toxicity, side effects, multidrug resistance.
Abstract:
Objective: Available conventional therapies are commonly used for the treatment of breast cancer,
such as surgical procedures, hormonal therapy, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. These therapies can be
either given alone or in combination with other therapies. Various side effects associated with chemotherapies,
including toxicity and multidrug resistance, have limited the use of chemotherapy, thus making it less effective
than the above mentioned therapies. This review focus has been summarised as the application of anticancer
with phytoconstituents that could be a promising and effective treatment strategy for breast cancer treatment.
Methods: This review is designed on relevant literature that was screened on the basis of in-scope criteria in the
title, abstract, and keywords of the searched articles. The available literature was searched on PubMed,
ScienceDirect, MedlinePlus, and Google scholar up to May 2021. A total of 47 articles were selected out of 168
articles based on inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Results: The major limitations accompanying available conventional treatment, mainly chemotherapy, include
low bioavailability at the specific site of tumor cells, the occurrence of multidrug resistance, and high doserelated
side effects. The phytoconstituents possessing anticancer properties and, when used in combination with
chemotherapeutic agents, impart promising and potential therapeutic value. Many in vitro and in vivo studies
showed that phytoconstituents could enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy drugs for breast cancer treatment.
Conclusion: The combination approaches of phytoconstituents with chemotherapeutic drugs provide less
toxicity to normal cells, reduce side effects, and overcome multidrug resistance, thus making the combination
approaches an effective strategy for the treatment of breast cancer.
