Some factors may increase the risk of contracting ovarian cancer like family history, gene mutation, increasing age, women never being pregnant or previous cancer of the breast, rectum, uterus or colon. Pelvic examination, tissue testing and ultrasound are some ways to detect ovarian cancer and treatment consists of chemotherapy and surgery.
Turmeric & Ovarian Cancer
The usage of turmeric and its chemical compound curcumin is not unknown for it is popularly used as a spice and for medicinal purposes in many Asian countries. Researchers are conducting studies on the various benefits that curcumin offers in protecting the immune system and fighting different types of cancer.According to studies turmeric can interfere with molecular pathways which are responsible for cause and growth of cancer. I have already discussed this in my previous article on Cancer. Here are some of the studies which are done to explore relationship between turmeric and ovarian cancer.
In a 2007 report on the in-vitro research on ovarian cancer, it was concluded that curcumin mayturmeric for ovarian cancer offer therapeutic benefits. These were test tube studies when specific cancer cells were targeted. When curcumin and chemo were given together, it was found to be less drug resistant. Curcumin is an anti-inflammatory agent that can inhibit COX-2 enzyme, therefore benefiting various cancer therapies. Further human studies are required.
Studies have found that when ovarian cancer cells receive pre-treatment from curcumin they seem more vulnerable to chemotherapy. The delivery could be in the form of turmeric nano-particles that make the cancer cells less resistant to chemotherapy. This pre-treatment with curcumin also means that lower doses of radiation and Cisplatin are required to suppress proliferation of ovarian cancer cells. This helps patients suffer from fewer side effects and lesser toxicity.
For this study, ovarian cancer cells resistant to Cisplatin were pre-treated with turmeric and this was followed by exposure to radiation or Cisplatin. Then colony formation and MTS (biochemical cell) assays were examined to determine the effect of curcumin on cancer cell growth. The curcumin that was administered was a special nano-particle formulation that was conjugated specifically for cancer cells with monoclonal antibody. Results showed that pre-treated cancer cells required lower radiation levels and lower doses of cisplatin to inhibit growth. Apoptosis (cell death) of cancer cells occurred after pre-treatment. The conclusion was that pre-treatment with turmeric increases chemo/radio sensitization of ovarian cancer cells resistant to cisplatin via multiple molecular mechanisms. Hence, using curcumin could provide therapeutic benefits for patients with ovarian cancer.
Another study was conducted to demonstrate that curcumin could inhibit transcription factor NF-kB, therefore suppressing angiogenesis and inflammation. An orthotopic murine ovarian cancer model was used to study the benefits of turmeric in this study. The study was performed on laboratory mice. It was found that curcumin suppressed proliferation and activation of NF-kB in vitro. In vivo dosages of 500mg/kg were found sufficient to suppress NF-kB, decrease angiogenic cytokine expression etc. There was a 49% and 55% reduction in tumor growth in the 2 in vivo curcumin models compared with control group. When curcumin was combined with docetaxel, there was 96% and 77% reduction in tumor growth compared to the control group, therefore showing its benefits for ovarian cancer.
Based on these studies role of turmeric in ovarian cancer looks positive and promising.