Abstract
Skin is the largest human organ, our protection against various environmental assaults and noxious agents. Accumulation of these stress events may lead to the formation of skin cancers, including both melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers. Although modern targeted therapies have ameliorated the management of cutaneous malignancies, a safer, more affordable, and more effective strategy for chemoprevention and treatment is clearly needed for the improvement of skin cancer care. Phytochemicals are biologically active compounds derived from plants and herbal products. These agents appear to be beneficial in the battle against cancer as they exert anti-carcinogenic effects and are widely available, highly tolerated, and cost-effective. Evidence has indicated that the anti-carcinogenic properties of phytochemicals are due to their anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, and anti-angiogenic effects. In this review, we discuss the preventive potential, therapeutic effects, bioavailability, and structure–activity relationship of these selected phytochemicals for the management of skin cancers. The knowledge compiled here will provide clues for future investigations on novel oncostatic phytochemicals and additional anti-skin cancer mechanisms.
Highlights
Skin is the largest human organ and serves as the first line protective barrier against environmental assaults
Hwang et al showed that topical application of capsaicin promoted skin carcinogenesis in mice treated with TPA, suggesting a pro-carcinogenic effect via the activation of tyrosine kinase epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and COX-2 [32]
This study indicated the ability of diallyl disulfide (DADS) to increase functional nuclear transcription factor, NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) in the epidermis by upregulation of p21 protein level, allowing Nrf2 to play its vital role in maintaining cellular redox homeostasis
Summary
Skin is the largest human organ and serves as the first line protective barrier against environmental assaults. Skin barriers are especially vulnerable because they are exposed to a range of noxious agents, sun damage, and microorganisms [1] Accumulation of these stresses may lead to skin carcinogenesis, which is a multistage process involving cancer initiation, promotion, and progression [2,3]. Pre-cancerous and cancerous skin lesions are readily accessible to both the subject and physician This is advantageous to the development of topical agents that can be applied only to the suspicious malignant area of change with minimal damage to normal skin. Its anti-apoptotic and anti-oxidative role as well as its inhibition of vascular endothelial growth factor may act as a potential compound in the prevention of skin cancer
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