Title:Phytocompounds from the Medicinal and Dietary Plants: Multi-target
Agents for Cervical Cancer Prevention and Therapy
Volume: 29
Issue: 26
Author(s): Shoaib Shoaib, Najmul Islam and Nabiha Yusuf*
Affiliation:
- Department of Dermatology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Keywords:
Cervical cancer, carcinogenesis, oxidative stress, chemoresistance, phytochemicals, cytotoxicity, chemotherapeutics, apoptosis.
Abstract: Cervical cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death among women
worldwide. Due to cervical cancer's high incidence and mortality, there is an unmet demand
for effective diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive agents. At present, the preferred
treatment strategies for advanced metastatic cervical cancer include surgery, radiotherapy,
and chemotherapy. However, cervical cancer is gradually developing resistance
to chemotherapy, thereby reducing its efficacy. Over the last several decades, phytochemicals,
a general term for compounds produced from plants, have gained attention for their
role in preventing cervical cancer. This role in cervical cancer prevention has garnered attention
on the medicinal properties of fruits and vegetables. Phytochemicals are currently
being evaluated for their ability to block proteins involved in carcinogenesis and chemoresistance
against cervical cancer. Chemoresistance to cancer drugs like cisplatin, doxorubicin,
and 5-fluorouracil has become a significant limitation of drug-based chemotherapy.
However, the combination of cisplatin with other phytochemicals has been identified
as a promising alternative to subjugate cisplatin resistance. Phytochemicals are
promising chemo-preventive and chemotherapeutic agents as they possess antioxidant,
anti-inflammatory, and anti-proliferative potential against many cancers, including cervical
cancer. Furthermore, the ability of the phytochemicals to modulate cellular signaling
pathways through up and down regulation of various proteins has been claimed for their
therapeutic potential. Phytochemicals also display a wide range of biological functions,
including cell cycle arrest, apoptosis induction, inhibition of invasion, and migration in
cervical cancer cells. Numerous studies have revealed the critical role of different signaling
proteins and their signaling pathways in the pathogenesis of cervical cancer. Here,
we review the ability of several dietary phytochemicals to alter carcinogenesis by modulating
various molecular targets.