Abstract
The etiology of breast cancer can be very different. Most antineoplastic drugs are not selective against tumor cells and also affect normal cells, leading to a wide variety of adverse reactions such as the production of free radicals by altering the redox state of the organisms. Therefore, the objective of this study was to elucidate if hydroxytyrosol (HT) (an antioxidant present in extra virgin olive oil) has a chemomodulatory effect when combined with the chemotherapeutic drugs epirubicin and cyclophosphamide followed by taxanes in breast cancer patients. Changes in plasma levels of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases 1 (TIMP-1) throughout the chemotherapy treatment were studied. Both molecules are involved in cell proliferation, apoptosis, neoangiogenesis, and metastasis in breast cancer patients. Women with breast cancer were divided into two groups: a group of patients receiving a dietary supplement of HT and a control group of patients receiving placebo. The results showed that the plasma levels of TIMP-1 in the group of patients receiving HT were significantly lower than those levels found in the control group after the epirubicin-cyclophosphamide chemotherapy.
Highlights
Most antineoplastic drugs are not selective against tumor cells; they affect normal cells, leading to a wide variety of adverse events in some tissues of the body
The results show that Group A presents significant differences in the plasma levels of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases 1 (TIMP-1) between T1 and T2
No significant differences in plasma levels of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) were found between the group treated with HT and the group that received the placebo
Summary
Most antineoplastic drugs are not selective against tumor cells; they affect normal cells, leading to a wide variety of adverse events in some tissues of the body. These adverse events are derived from the mechanism of action of these drugs, including the production of free radicals, which affect the redox state of the organism [1,2]. These ROS represent an important factor in carcinogenesis and can play a role in the three stages of cancer: initiation, promotion, and tumor progression. Free radicals cause oxidative damage in the DNA, contributing to the mutagenesis, which is essential for the process of tumor initiation
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