| Cancer-related inflammation (CRI) is associated with the malignant progression of several cancer types.
Targeting these pathways is a novel promising strategy for cancer prevention and treatment. In this present
study, we evaluated the efficacy of α-L-guluronic acid (ALG), a potent anti-inflammatory agent on breast cancerrelated
inflammation both in vitro and in vivo conditions. Our results indicated that ALG can effectively inhibit
the CRI and tumor-promoting mediators (COX-2, MMP2, MMP9, VEGF and proinflammatory cytokines) without
direct toxic effects on the cells. Moreover, it was found that, ALG can effectively inhibit the tumor cell adhesion
to extracellular matrix, seeding in implantation tissue, reduce accumulation of immunosuppressive and inflammatory
cells in tumor-bearing mice. These findings were associated with decreased tumor growth, metastasis,
angiogenesis and prolonged mice survival. In conclusion, our data provide a cellular and molecular justification
for the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in treating cancer and imply the potential
anti-tumor activity of ALG therapy via inhibition of CRI. These findings could lead to the establishment of novel
NSAID-based cancer therapy in the near future and open a new horizon for cancer treatment. |