ABSTRACT
This review introduced the anti-tumor effects of non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and summarized their possible molecular mechanisms according to recent abroad literatures and our research results. Some evidence showed that the anti-tumor mechanisms of NSAIDs were different in various tumors.NSAIDs decreased the biosynthesis of PGE_2 and regulated the expressions of downstream correlated genes and proteins through restraining abnormal expression of COX-2 in certain neoplasms,which resulted in the inhibition of tumor angiogenesis and proliferation as well as induced apoptosis. But in other cancer cells, NSAIDs, as activators of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ? (PPAR?), induced COX-2 expression, promoted the biosynthesis of cyclopentenone prostaglandins (cyPGs). cyPGs further induced tumor cell apoptosis with PPAR? dependently or PPAR? independently. Since their special mechanisms of anti-proliferation and pro-apoptosis, NSAIDs revealed significant synergistic effects with other anti-tumor treatments.