Medicinal benefits of green tea: part II. review of anticancer properties

J Altern Complement Med. 2005 Aug;11(4):639-52. doi: 10.1089/acm.2005.11.639.

Abstract

Currently there is wide interest in the medicinal benefits of green tea (Camellia sinensis). Tea is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, and extracts of tea leaves are also sold as dietary supplements. Green tea extracts contain a unique set of catechins that possess biologic activity in antioxidant, antiangiogenesis, and antiproliferative assays that are potentially relevant to the prevention and treatment of various forms of cancer. With the increasing interest in the health properties of tea and a significant rise in their scientific investigation, it is the aim of this review to summarize recent findings on the anticancer and medicinal properties of green tea, focusing on the biologic properties of the major tea catechin, (-)-epigallocatechin and its antitumor properties.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anticarcinogenic Agents / pharmacology*
  • Anticarcinogenic Agents / therapeutic use
  • Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / pharmacology
  • Antioxidants / pharmacology*
  • Antioxidants / therapeutic use
  • Breast Neoplasms / drug therapy
  • Camellia sinensis
  • Catechin / pharmacology*
  • Catechin / therapeutic use
  • Female
  • Free Radical Scavengers / pharmacology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Neoplasms / prevention & control
  • Plant Extracts / pharmacology*
  • Plant Extracts / therapeutic use
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / drug therapy
  • Tea*

Substances

  • Anticarcinogenic Agents
  • Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic
  • Antioxidants
  • Free Radical Scavengers
  • Plant Extracts
  • Tea
  • green tea extract AR25
  • Catechin