Drug Design, Development and Therapy (Feb 2019)

Epigallocatechin-3-gallate in the prevention and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: experimental findings and translational perspectives

  • Bimonte S,
  • Albino V,
  • Piccirillo M,
  • Nasto A,
  • Molino C,
  • Palaia R,
  • Cascella M

Journal volume & issue
Vol. Volume 13
pp. 611 – 621

Abstract

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Sabrina Bimonte,1 Vittorio Albino,2 Mauro Piccirillo,2 Aurelio Nasto,3 Carlo Molino,4 Raffaele Palaia,2 Marco Cascella1 1Division of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS – Fondazione G Pascale, Naples, Italy; 2Division of Hepatobiliary Surgical Oncology, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS – Fondazione G Pascale, Naples, Italy; 3UOC Chirurgia Generale ad Indirizzo Oncologico, POA Tortora, Pagani, Salerno, Italy; 4A Cardarelli Chirurgia Generale – AORN, Naples, Italy Abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a primary liver malignancy, is one of the deadliest cancers worldwide. Despite orthotopic liver transplantation and hepatic resection representing the principal lines of treatment for this pathology, only a minority of patients can be resected owing to cirrhosis or late diagnosis. Keeping in mind the end goal of conquering these challenges, new alternative approaches have been proposed. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the principal catechin of green tea with multiple biological properties, is able to modulate different molecular mechanisms underlying HCC, mainly through its antioxidant activity. In this article, we revise these findings reported in the literature, in order to highlight the potential roles of EGCG in the treatment of HCC. The CAMARADES criteria were applied for quality assessment of animal studies, and a narrative synthesis performed. New bits of information available for translational perspectives into clinical practice are addressed. Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, tumor progression, preclinical studies

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