Traditional Chinese Medicine Ameliorates Tumor Chemotherapy Resistance： A Review
10.13422/j.cnki.syfjx.20250922
- VernacularTitle:中医药改善肿瘤化疗耐药研究进展
- Author:
Jingyi HUANG
1
;
Yuetong LIU
1
;
He LI
1
;
Qirui MU
2
;
Chenyi LI
2
;
Chunying LIU
1
;
Yuan GAO
1
Author Information
1. College of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine， Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine， Shenyang 110847， China
2. The First Clinical Medical College of Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine， Shenyang 110847， China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
tumor;
multi-drug resistance;
reversal mechanisms;
traditional Chinese medicine;
research progress
- From:
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae
2025;31(10):105-116
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
In the process of tumor chemotherapy， the emergence of multi-drug resistance （MDR） has always been a thorny problem， which is a result of the joint action of the host， tumor cells， and the immune microenvironment. Tumor cells can escape the toxicity of chemotherapeutic drugs through multiple pathways， being easy to produce drug resistance. MDR greatly restricts the effect of chemotherapeutic drugs on tumor cells and affects their therapeutic effects. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has the unique advantages of multi-target， multi-pathway and individualized treatment. The TCM treatment of tumors emphasizes regulating Yin and Yang， as well as reinforcing healthy Qi and dispelling pathogen. In recent years， TCM has demonstrated remarkable efficacy in the treatment of tumors and the amelioration of multi-drug resistance. TCM not only can target the phenomenon of MDR but also greatly weakens the side effects of the patients after the chemotherapy， thus improving the survival quality and rate of the patients. Accordingly， many patients adopt TCM as an adjuvant therapy during or after chemotherapy. The binding of TCM to targets can reverse the drug resistance of various tumors， which has become an emerging research highlight. From the regulatory mechanism of TCM on MDR of tumors， this paper introduces the mechanisms by which tumor cells continue to grow， proliferate， and metastasize by adjusting the intracellular drug concentration， altering or utilizing the tumor microenvironment， and affecting the cell death mode to achieve the resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs. In this regard， the active ingredients and compound prescriptions of TCM can increase the sensitivity of chemotherapeutic drugs by down-regulating drug transporters， improving the tumor microenvironment， and modulating the drug resistance pathways associated with apoptosis， autophagy， ferroptosis， or pyroptosis. The aim of this paper is to explore more clinical practical value of TCM in the treatment of tumors and provide exploratory ideas and a theoretical basis for the future research on tumors and MDR.
