Jornal de Oncologia Clínica e Experimental

Probiotics, the New Approach for Cancer Prevention and/or Potentialization of Anti-Cancer Treatment?

Urszula Daniluk

Uncontrolled proliferation of the cells and their resistance to programmed cell death are main features of malignant cells. The effectiveness in the treatment of cancers is based on the restoration of the sensitivity of transformed cells to apoptotic signals. Although significant progress has been made in this field during last decades, the resistance to chemotherapy becomes a problem in many cases. The association between cancer and modifiable health behaviors is well supported. At least one-half of all cancers are suggested to have a dietary component. Therefore many of the dietary agents and natural health products have attracted the attention of scientists. One of them is probiotics, the nonpathogenic microorganisms living in the intestinal tract which benefit the host. In human clinical trials, probiotics has been used successfully in the treatment of acute diarrhea. Other clinical indications for probiotics, mainly in inflammatory bowel disease, are still evaluated with promising preliminary data.