Abstract
Despite clear results of observational studies linking a diet rich in fruits and vegetables to a decreased cancer risk, large interventional trials evaluating the impact of dietary micronutrient supplementation, mostly vitamins, could not show any beneficial effects. Today it has become clear that a single micronutrient, given in supernutritional doses, cannot match cancer preventive effects of whole fruits and vegetables. In this regard polyphenols came into focus, not only because of their antioxidant potential but also because of their ability to interact with molecular targets within the cells. Because polyphenols occur in many foods and beverages in high concentration and evidence for their anticancer activity is best for tissues they can come into direct contact with, field cancerization predestines upper aerodigestive tract epithelium for cancer chemoprevention by polyphenols. In this paper, we summarize cancer chemopreventive attempts with emphasis on head and neck carcinogenesis and discuss some methodological issues. We present data regarding antimutagenic effects of curcumin and epigallocatechin-3-gallate in human oropharyngeal mucosa cultures exposed to cigarette smoke condensate.
Highlights
About two-thirds of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) can be attributed to heavy tobacco and alcohol consumption
Because polyphenols occur in many foods and beverages in high concentration and evidence for their anticancer activity is best for tissues they can come into direct contact with, field cancerization predestines upper aerodigestive tract epithelium for cancer chemoprevention by polyphenols
After the last incubation, cultures were exposed to cigarette smoke condensate (CSC, 0.7 mg/mL; produced of Marlboro Flavor Mix; Analytisch-Biologisches Forschungslabor, Munich, Germany) for 18 hours
Summary
About two-thirds of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) can be attributed to heavy tobacco and alcohol consumption. Slaughter’s concept of field cancerization best explains head and neck carcinogenesis, that HNSCC patients often suffer from syn- or metachronous cancers and have a high risk for local recurrences or second primary tumors According to this concept, head and neck squamous cell carcinomas arise from multifocal precancerous lesions within large areas/fields of condemned mucosa in the oral cavity, pharynx, and larynx [2]. There were 28% more lung cancers and 17% more deaths in the active intervention group [12] Another large-scale interventional trial evaluated the effects of α-tocopherol (vitamin E) and β-carotene on cancer incidences. The EUROSCAN study looked for positive effects of retinyl palmitate (vitamin A) and Nacetylcysteine on overall survival, event-free survival and incidence of second primary tumors of head and neck and lung cancer patients. Since randomized controlled trials are designed to answer narrowly defined questions, it may be unwise to study only those at high risk [15]
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