The Role of Natural Extracts in the Management of Infantile Hemangiomas and Vascular Tumors

Abstract

Iulia Cristina Roca,1,* Elena Cojocaru,2 Carmen Daniela Rusu,1 Laura Mihaela Trandafir,3 Cătălina Iulia Săveanu,4 Vasile Valeriu Lupu,3,* Lăcrămioara Ionela Butnariu,5 Viorel Ţarcă,6,* Mihaela Moscalu,6 Jana Bernic,7 Ancuța Lupu,3,* Elena Ţarcă1 1Department of Surgery II, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, 700115, Romania; 2Department of Morphofunctional Sciences I – Pathology, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, 700115, Romania; 3Department of Mother and Child Medicine–Pediatrics, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, 700115, Romania; 4Surgical Department, Discipline of Preventive Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iasi, 700115, Romania; 5Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iași, 700115, Romania; 6Department of Preventive Medicine and Interdisciplinarity, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iași, 700115, Romania; 7Discipline of Pediatric Surgery, “Nicolae Testemițanu” State University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Chisinau, Moldova*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Carmen Daniela Rusu; Cătălina Iulia Săveanu, Tel [phone], Email [email protected]; [email protected]: Hemangiomas are vascular tumors resulting from the proliferation of endothelial-like cells; they are the most common childhood tumors, affecting approximately 5– 10% of newborns and infants. Besides hemangiomas, which are definitely benign tumors despite their overgrowth potential, there are other vascular tumors like hemangioendotheliomas, which may display intermediate characteristics between benign hemangiomas and highly malignant angiosarcomas. Standard therapy may be constricted by serious adverse effects, high cost, or traumatic influence. Diet is a major resource for health preservation, disease prevention, and treatment. The therapeutic property of edible berries, marine products, or medicinal plants have long been known and used in traditional medicine; a plant-based nutrition can prevent the development and progression of diseases associated with extensive neo-vascularization. The purpose of our review is to highlight those natural treatments that hemangioma and vascular tumor patients can receive in the future, both for their benefit and that of their families. We performed the review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Metanalysis Statement. We used the Web of Science, PubMed, and EMBASE engines for the study, and searched for the association of hemangioma with naturopathic treatment/plant extract/plants in published articles. We found that natural extracts from plants and fruits are cost-effective and safe treatments for hemangiomas and vascular tumors, as well as for other forms of cancer. In any case, more in vitro and in vivo studies are needed to confirm the proposed signaling pathways in tumors and validate the improvement parameters after natural products administration. The era of molecularly targeted therapy and personalized medicine is approaching and naturally occurring substances are very useful tools for tumor treatment and prevention. Plant extract substances have strong specificity and pertinence, are non- toxic and have few side effects, and may become an emerging cancer treatment. Keywords: vascular abnormalities, plants, plant extract, naturopathic treatment

Keywords

• vascular abnormalities
• plants
• plant extract
• naturopathic treatment