Table 1.

Different pathways of various cancers regulated by curcumin as an adjuvant

Serial no.	Types of cancer	Pathways affected by curcumin		Drugs normally given in combination	References
		Upregulated	Downregulated
1.	Breast cancer	p53-dependent BAX pathway, mitotic spindle disruption	LOX pathway, MMP-9 pathway, and metastasis	Doxorubicin, brentuximab, carboplatin, vinblastine	8,59,63,89–95
2.	Lung cancer	P21/Apaf/caspase 9 pathway of apoptosis	STAT1, NAT pathway, and FPTase-mediated cell growth	Gemcitabine, topotecan, pertuzumab	8,59,63,74,95–99
3.	Colorectal cancer	JNK, p38MAPK pathway, TRAIL-induced apoptosis	Notch1 pathway, COX-2-mediated cell renewal	5-Fluorouracil, trastuzumab	8,59,62,63,99–105
4.	Leukemia	Caspase-3 and -8, P27 KIP-1 pathway	Cyclin D and NF-κB-mediated cell division	Methotrexate, bosutinib	8,59,63,106–110, 111
5.	Prostate cancer	BIM-mediated apoptosis, BAX pathway	NF-κB-induced growth, AKT pathway, and cell division	Vinorelbine, cobimetinib	8,59,62,112–117, 118
6.	Cervical and uterine cancers	BAD-mediated apoptosis	ETS-1 production, NF-κB, and AP-1 pathways	Cisplatin, carboplatin	8,59,62,119–123
7.	Oral cancer	P450 pathway and apoptosis	COX-2 pathway and cell renewal	Radiation, faslodex	8,59,62,80,124,125
8.	Lymphoma	BAX and BIM pathways	JAK-STAT, tyrosine kinase, and AKT pathways	Doxorubicin, methotrexate	8,59,62,113, 126–128,111

Abbreviations: COX, cyclooxygenase; MMP, matrix metalloprotease; LOX, lipoxygenase; TRAIL, TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand; NAT, arylamine N-acetyltransferase; NF-κB, nuclear factor-kappa B; AP-1, activating protein1; STAT, signal transducers and activators of transcription; FPTase, farnesyl protein transferase; JAK, janus kinase; JNK, c-jun N-terminal kinase; MAPK, mitogen-activated protein kinase.