Singh AK, Singh SV, Kumar R, Kumar S, Senapati S, Pandey AK. Current therapeutic modalities and chemopreventive role of natural products in liver cancer: Progress and promise . World J Hepatol 2023; 15(1): 1-18 [PMID: 36744169 DOI: 10.4254/wjh.v15.i1.1]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Abhay K Pandey, PhD, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, University Road, Prayagraj 211002, Uttar Pradesh, India. akpandey23@rediffmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Oncology
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Hepatol. Jan 27, 2023; 15(1): 1-18 Published online Jan 27, 2023. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v15.i1.1
Current therapeutic modalities and chemopreventive role of natural products in liver cancer: Progress and promise
Amit Kumar Singh, Shiv Vardan Singh, Ramesh Kumar, Shashank Kumar, Sabyasachi Senapati, Abhay K Pandey
Amit Kumar Singh, Department of Botany, Government Naveen Girls College, Balod (Hemchand Yadav University), Durg, Chattisgarh, India
Amit Kumar Singh, Shiv Vardan Singh, Ramesh Kumar, Abhay K Pandey, Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Prayagraj 211002, Uttar Pradesh, India
Ramesh Kumar, Shashank Kumar, Department of Biochemistry, School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda 151401, Punjab, India
Sabyasachi Senapati, Department of Human Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda 151401, Punjab, India
Author contributions: Pandey AK conceptualized the idea; Singh AK, Singh SV, Kumar R, Kumar S and Senapati S performed the literature search and wrote the first draft of the manuscript; Kumar R and Singh SV validated the references; Kumar S and Pandey AK critically reviewed and revised the manuscript; Pandey AK supervised the project; all authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors report no relevant conflict of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Abhay K Pandey, PhD, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, University Road, Prayagraj 211002, Uttar Pradesh, India. akpandey23@rediffmail.com
Received: April 30, 2022 Peer-review started: April 30, 2022 First decision: May 29, 2022 Revised: July 2, 2022 Accepted: December 21, 2022 Article in press: December 21, 2022 Published online: January 27, 2023
Abstract
Liver cancer is a severe concern for public health officials since the clinical cases are increasing each year, with an estimated 5-year survival rate of 30%–35% after diagnosis. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) constitutes a significant subtype of liver cancer (approximate75%) and is considered primary liver cancer. Treatment for liver cancer mainly depends on the stage of its progression, where surgery including, hepatectomy and liver transplantation, and ablation and radiotherapy are the prime choice. For advanced liver cancer, various drugs and immunotherapy are used as first-line treatment, whereas second-line treatment includes chemotherapeutic drugs from natural and synthetic origins. Sorafenib and lenvatinib are first-line therapies, while regorafenib and ramucirumab are second-line therapy. Various metabolic and signaling pathways such as Notch, JAK/ STAT, Hippo, TGF-β, and Wnt have played a critical role during HCC progression. Dysbiosis has also been implicated in liver cancer. Drug-induced toxicity is a key obstacle in the treatment of liver cancer, necessitating the development of effective and safe medications, with natural compounds such as resveratrol, curcumin, diallyl sulfide, and others emerging as promising anticancer agents. This review highlights the current status of liver cancer research, signaling pathways, therapeutic targets, current treatment strategies and the chemopreventive role of various natural products in managing liver cancer.
Core Tip: Liver cancer is a serious public health concern and its therapy is stage-dependent. Approximately 75% of all liver cancers are hepatocellular carcinoma, which is regarded as primary liver cancer. First and second-line therapies are used to manage the disease but they have their own limitations in terms of toxicity and other severe side effects. Natural products are the prime choice for the future treatment of liver cancer. With advancement in the knowledge about the molecular mechanism of the disease, newer strategies having fewer side effects and greater effectiveness are needed.
