Curcumin a nf-b inhibitor with concurrent chemo-radiation in locally advanced head and neck cancers

Aim: To study the role of addition of Curcumin to conventional chemo-radiotherapy in locally advanced Head and Neck cancers
Subjects and methods: In this prospective study, 55 patients with Stage III / IV Head and Neck cancers excluding Nasopharynx were treated with Cap. Curcumin 500 mg 2 bd from Day 1 of radiation along with weekly Cisplatin 40 mg/m2 and External radiation 66 Gy in 200 cGy per # at a tertiary hospital in South India. Response was assessed at the end of radiation therapy and 1 month later.
Results: All 55 completed the treatment. Male : Female ratio was 84 % : 16 % and the median age was 48years ( range 28 – 65). Hypopharynx was the site of cancer in 33 % of the patients while Oropharynx comprised 31 %, Larynx 24 % and Oral cavity 12 %. 24 % of the patients had Stage III disease while 76 % were in Stage IV. Complete response was seen in 78 % of patients within 1 month of completion of radiation therapy. Overall response rate was 91 %. There were no Grade 3 / 4 toxicities.
Conclusion: Concurrent administration of NF-B inhibitor Curcumin at 2 g/day along with weekly Cisplatin as radio-sensitizer was found to increase the complete response rates in locally advanced Head and Neck cancers treated with radiation therapy compared to historical data without Curcumin with no added toxicities. It would be a cheaper alternative to Bortezomib as a NF-B inhibitor.