Unraveling the Chemistry of Curcumin for Colon Cancer Prevention and Treatment

Abstract

Colorectal cancer is the leading cause of mortality. Several studies are focused on understanding the molecular mechanism to develop potential therapeutics to enhance patient health standards. Curcumin is a bioactive component derived from Curcuma Longa implicated with a spectrum of anticancer properties such as antioxidants. It has been proposed to possess promising features in suppressing colon cancer proliferation. However, the pharmacokinetics studies denote that curcumin lacks bioavailability at the target site which leads to systemic metabolism and excretion. So, studies were diverted towards eliciting the importance of structural units and modifying curcumin conformation to improve the anti-cancer effect and bioavailability. Curcumin and its analogues were employed in clinical trials as a cotreatment group to alleviate the side effects of traditional chemotherapy. Here the authors review the recent trends in the usage of curcumin in colorectal cancer and emphasis relevant studies to update the current status of therapeutics.