Opportunities, obstacles and current challenges of flavonoids for luminal and triple-negative breast cancer therapy

VACHETTA, VANINA S.; MARDER, MARIEL; TRONCOSO, MARÍA F.; ELOLA, MARÍA T.

European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry Reports

Elsevier

Año: 2022 vol. 6

2772-4174

Flavonoids are a large group of polyphenols with numerous biological effects on cancer cells. They have been shown to affect proliferation via cell cycle arrest, apoptosis and necrosis and to exert anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-mutagenic actions. Anti-cancer effects of flavonoids, mostly in preclinical evaluations, should betranslated into clinical cancer treatment research, where evidence is still scarce. Although therapies targetingprimary breast tumors have markedly improved, those targeting elusive micro-metastases are less effective. In thisscenario, the present review discusses the anti-tumor effects of different simple natural and synthetic flavonoidson luminal and triple-negative breast cancer, highlighting biological effects such as apoptosis, epithelialmesenchymaltransition reversion, cell migration and invasion inhibition, metalloprotease inactivation/downregulationand anti-angiogenesis, as well as compiling in vivo treatments in experimental tumor models andsome specific clinical trials. In addition, this review discusses the mechanisms underlying flavonoid anti-tumoreffects. Moreover, although flavonoids may be regarded as a spectrum of promising polyphenols with multifacetedanti-tumor effects, mainly applicable to metastatic breast cancer management, some major challenges andconcerns about potential flavonoid therapy in luminal and triple-negative breast cancer are also discussed.