Anti-tumor Activity of Chinese Medicine Based on EGFR Signaling Pathway： A Review / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

In China， malignant tumors have become the main cause of death. In the past half century， the incidence and mortality of malignant tumors have been on the rise， posing a threat to health of patients， and the burden of cancer has been increasing. At the moment， malignant tumors are mainly treated by surgery， radiotherapy， and cytotoxic drugs， which， however， have limitations and induce great adverse reactions. As biological technology and the research on tumor microenvironment， immunology， cell biology， and molecular biology advance， high-efficiency low-toxicity targeted therapy has attracted wide attention in the treatment of tumors. Epidermal growth factor receptor （EGFR） plays an important role in many cellular processes such as cell proliferation， survival， differentiation， migration， inflammation， and stromal homeostasis. EGFR promotes tumor growth， proliferation， and metastasis in a variety of ways. Chinese medicine has unique efficacy in the comprehensive treatment of malignant tumors. Through multiple components， multiple targets， and multiple pathways， it enhances the efficacy， reduces toxicity， prolongs life， and improves life quality in the treatment of tumors. Many Chinese medicines and their active components exert anti-tumor effect by inhibiting the EGFR signal transduction pathway. Through targeted inhibition of EGFR， Chinese medicine can promote the apoptosis and autophagy of tumor cells， suppress the proliferation and metastasis of tumor cells， and delay the progression of tumors. Thus， EGFR is a potential target for suppressing tumor. This paper summarizes the relationship between EGFR signal transduction pathway and tumor occurrence and development and analyzes the anti-tumor action mode and possible mechanisms of Chinese medicine and the active components by regulating EGFR signaling pathway， which is expected to provide a reference for clinical practice.