Vol. 8, Issue 5 (2019)

Author(s):
Shreya Bhardwaj, Mahipal Singh Tomar, Nitika Rathi and Shuchi Upadhyay

Abstract:
Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a type of herb that belongs to the ginger family. Turmeric is a spice that has been used widely in a variety of food items in India as a flavoring and coloring agent. Curcumin is present in the form of 1, 7-bis (4-hydroxy-3methoxy phenyl) -1, 6-heptadiene-3, 5-dione) it also works as a compounds of phenol and is the main ingredient in the rhizome of the herb naming, Curcuma longa, which is extracted as a yellow pigment from the powdered form which is called as turmeric, the rhizome from 2000 BC which also is known as anti-inflammatory agent. Researches have been done over the last 50 years which reported that curcumin can treat and prevent cancer. Pharmacologically, curcumin has been found to be safe. It has been directed at doses up to 10g/day. Many of the researches have suggested that curcumin has a huge prospective in the anticipation & chemotherapy of cancer. Despite excessive progress in beneficial practices over the last ten years, neither the frequency nor the mortality from cancer has changed from the last 30 years. Existing anticancer drugs have less efficacy, various complications, and highly expensive. Hence, recognizing therapeutic agents lacking these drawbacks is required. Curcumin is believed to interfere in all the stages of cancer development, invasion of cancer cells and during the metastasis process. It also hinders the tumor imitation and promotion as well as various phases of multiplication of cell, invasion, and ontogenesis.