Antioxidants for Breast Cancer

Dear Colleagues,

Breast cancer is one of the most frequent cancer, and one of the leading causes of death among women worldwide, although the frequency of disease varies between regions. Advances in early detection methods, low physical activity, smoking, diet and nutrition, obesity, stress, hormone therapy, reproductive events (early menarche or late menopause), or exposure to ionizing radiation are known factors that influence the rising incidence rates of breast cancer. Importantly, overall survival has improved, mainly due to better medical care, early detection, and important progress of treatments (surgery, targeted therapies, immunotherapy, and tailored treatments, among others).

In breast cancer, amid other malignances, tumorigenesis, progression, resistance to therapies, or relapse are highly influenced by important molecular events, such as genetic aberrations, activation of multiple signaling pathways (TGFβ, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, integrated stress response, etc.) or metabolic rewiring, which invariably promote tumor cell survival, proliferation, metastasis, tumor cell heterogeneity, or adaptation to adverse microenvironmental conditions. Generation of oxidative stress is a common consequence of these episodes, which is deftly balanced by cancer cells to avoid any detriment to their viability. The tight regulation of redox homeostasis by tumor cells can maintain low levels of oxidative stress, indicing a plethora of protective mechanisms aimed at preserving tumor progression and aggressiveness (expression of detoxifying enzymes, inflammation, angiogenesis, proliferation, or viability). On this basis, inhibition or amelioration of oxidative stress by antioxidants has been extensively investigated as a plausible strategy to counteract tumor aggressiveness and progression, not only for breast cancer prevention but also as putative adjuvants in cancer treatment.

Investigations showed that dietary antioxidants, such as hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, sulforaphane, epigallocatechin gallate, or curcumin, exhibit anti-breast cancer effects as they not only inhibit tumor cell proliferation and viability, but also aggressiveness by targeting tumor initiating cells, epithelial to mesenchymal plasticity, migration, and invasion. This evidence should be addressed with caution because, first, some of these properties could not directly be attributed to the antioxidant capacity of these compounds and, second, contradictory reports noted absence of a beneficial impact of antioxidants on breast cancer patient prognosis.

This special issue of Antioxidants is focused on addressing the latest research on the beneficial and/or negative roles of antioxidants, from either natural or synthetic origins, on breast cancer, including prevention, onset, and progression, as well as their potential as adjuvant therapies at different levels, with special attention on immunotherapy, targeted therapies, chemo and radiation therapy, surgery, or resistance to treatment, as well as on patient prognosis.

Dr. Sergio Granados-Principal
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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• Chemoprevention
• Adjuvant treatment
• Immunotherapy
• Targeted therapy
• Patient prognosis
• Translational oncology
• Clinical oncology
• Dietary antioxidants
• Synthetic antioxidants
• Therapy resistance