The Efficacy of Inositol in Prevention and Treatment of Cancer

Abstract

Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide. When the risk factors are examined, nutrition, which is among the environmental factors, has the highest share with a rate of 30-35%. There has been increasing evidence recently that inositol, one of the B group vitamins, may have a role in the treatment of various diseases, including cancer. Inositols and its pyrophosphate forms, play roles in many functions from intracellular signal transduction to hormone modulation. There are nine isomers of inositol. The most studied inositol isomers for cancer are miyo-inositol and chiro-inositol, while the phosphate derivatives are inositol hexaphosphate and inositol trispyrophosphate. Inositol hexaphosphate is also known as phytic acid. The anticancer activities of these molecules are described as broad spectrum, owing to their ability to modulate the entire cell cycle. Studies have shown that inositol provides promising results in various cancer types with multiple mechanisms such as immune system activation, epigenetic mechanisms, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and synergistic effects. However, further and large-scale human studies are needed to fully understand the effects of different types and combinations of inositol in both chemoprevention and cancer therapy.