Antitumor effects of immunity-enhancing traditional Chinese medicine
- PMID: 31710893
- DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2019.109570
Antitumor effects of immunity-enhancing traditional Chinese medicine
Abstract
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been traditionally used to treat patients with cancers in China. It not only alleviates the symptoms of tumor patients and improves their quality of life, but also controls the size of tumors and prolongs the survival of tumor patients. While some herbs of TCM may exert therapeutic effects by directly targeting cancer cells or reducing side effects caused by antitumor drugs, others can control tumor growth and metastasis via enhancing antitumor immunity. In particular, TCM can exert antitumor effects by upregulating immune responses even in immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. For instance, it reduces the number of M2-type macrophages and Treg cells in the tumor tissue. Although extensive reviews on directly killing cancer cells by TCM have been conducted, a review of anticancer activity of TCM solely based on its immunity-enhancing capacity is unusual. This review will summarize research progress of antitumor TCM that regulates the immune system, including both innate immunity, such as macrophages, dendritic cells, natural killer cells and MDSCs, and adaptive immunity, including CD4+/CD8+ T lymphocytes, regulatory T cells (Tregs) and B cells. As cancer immunotherapy has recently achieved certain success, it is expected that the clinical applications of immunity-enhancing TCM or traditional medicine for treating various cancer patients will be expanded. Further studies on the mechanisms by which TCM regulates immunity will provide new insights into how TCM controls tumor growth and metastasis, and may help improve its therapeutic effects on various cancers in clinic.
Keywords: Adaptive immunity; Antitumor immunity; Cancer; Innate immunity; Traditional Chinese medicine.
Copyright © 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.
Similar articles
-
Research Status and Molecular Mechanism of the Traditional Chinese Medicine and Antitumor Therapy Combined Strategy Based on Tumor Microenvironment.Front Immunol. 2021 Jan 21;11:609705. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.609705. eCollection 2020. Front Immunol. 2021. PMID: 33552068 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Effect and Molecular Mechanisms of Traditional Chinese Medicine on Tumor Targeting Tumor-Associated Macrophages.Drug Des Devel Ther. 2020 Feb 28;14:907-919. doi: 10.2147/DDDT.S223646. eCollection 2020. Drug Des Devel Ther. 2020. PMID: 32184560 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Progress in the Regulation of Immune Cells in the Tumor Microenvironment by Bioactive Compounds of Traditional Chinese Medicine.Molecules. 2024 May 17;29(10):2374. doi: 10.3390/molecules29102374. Molecules. 2024. PMID: 38792234 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Positive Role of Chinese Herbal Medicine in Cancer Immune Regulation.Am J Chin Med. 2020;48(7):1577-1592. doi: 10.1142/S0192415X20500780. Epub 2020 Nov 13. Am J Chin Med. 2020. PMID: 33202152 Review.
-
Targeting Tumor Immunosuppressive Microenvironment for the Prevention of Hepatic Cancer: Applications of Traditional Chinese Medicines in Targeted Delivery.Curr Top Med Chem. 2020;20(30):2789-2800. doi: 10.2174/1568026620666201019111524. Curr Top Med Chem. 2020. PMID: 33076809 Review.
Cited by
-
Chinese Medicine in Colorectal Cancer Treatment: From Potential Targets and Mechanisms to Clinical Application.Chin J Integr Med. 2024 Sep 27. doi: 10.1007/s11655-024-4115-8. Online ahead of print. Chin J Integr Med. 2024. PMID: 39331211 Review.
-
Lonicerae Japonicae Flos with the homology of medicine and food: a review of active ingredients, anticancer mechanisms, pharmacokinetics, quality control, toxicity and applications.Front Oncol. 2024 Sep 9;14:1446328. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1446328. eCollection 2024. Front Oncol. 2024. PMID: 39314630 Free PMC article. Review.
-
A review on antitumor effect of pachymic acid.Medicine (Baltimore). 2024 Sep 20;103(38):e39752. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000039752. Medicine (Baltimore). 2024. PMID: 39312302 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Tiaogan Bushen Xiaoji Formula Enhances the Sensitivity of Estrogen Receptor- Positive Breast Cancer to Tamoxifen by Inhibiting the TGF-β/SMAD Pathway.Cancer Manag Res. 2024 Sep 9;16:1189-1204. doi: 10.2147/CMAR.S477399. eCollection 2024. Cancer Manag Res. 2024. PMID: 39282606 Free PMC article.
-
Bioactive Polysaccharides from Gracilaria lemaneiformis: Preparation, Structures, and Therapeutic Insights.Foods. 2024 Aug 31;13(17):2782. doi: 10.3390/foods13172782. Foods. 2024. PMID: 39272547 Free PMC article. Review.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Research Materials