Introduction:

Curcuma longa (turmeric) is a plant of Hindu origin that is mainly composed of curcumin and has many attributes, including hypolipidemic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatatory and anticancer properties.

Objective:

To determine whether turmeric has anticancer properties, based on scientific evidence.

Materials and methods:

A literature review of PubMed, MEDLINE and Scielo databases was conducted. The review covered the first semester in 2006 to first semester of 2018 time period.

Results:

Anticancer characteristics as well as other benefits of curcumin such as inhibition of tumor growth, autophagy activities, oxidative damage protection, and reduction of proliferation of tumor cells were confirmed.

Conclusion:

Curcuma longa can be used for the prevention and treatment of cancer, which generates new knowledge and different applications in the fight against this disease.

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