EFFECTIVE ROLES OF FUNCTIONAL FOODS AND NUTRACEUTICALS IN MANAGEMENT AND TREATMENT OF CANCER IN AFRICA: AN INSIGHT INTO ITS THERAPEUTIC AVENUES AND POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENT AS FUTURE NUTRACEUTICA

ABSTRACT  

Cancer they say is the chief of all maladies, following cardiovascular disease, cancer is the second leading cause of death in most affluent countries. There are about 13.3 million new cases of cancer in 2010 which is predicted to cost US$ 290 billion, but the total costs is expected to increases to US$ 458 billion in the year 2030 on basis of World  Economic  Forum  in  2011.  More  than  half  of  all  cancer  cases  and  deaths worldwide  are  considered  preventable.  From  its  inception,  the  disease  control priorities  series  has  focused  attention on  delivering  efficacious  health  interventions that  can result  in  intense  reductions  in  mortality  and  disability at relatively modest cost.  Common  cancers  include  prostate  cancer,  breast  cancer,  bladder  cancer, colorectal cancer, and skin cancers. Treatment of cancer is very expensive, hence the need to prevent the condition primarily, or even secondarily. Foods, like chemicals, have cumulative effects and contain substances both essential and non-essential which have  been  shown to  be  healthy.  This  led  to  acclamation  and  acceptance  of  certain foods  as  providing  health  benefits  functional  foods.  Functional  foods  and nutraceuticals  are  chemopreventive  to  cancers  as  evidenced  by  different  researches conducted  over  the  years.  This  review,  presents  the  complex  patterns  of  cancer incidence  and  death  around the  world  and  evidence  on  effective  and  cost-effective ways to control cancers using functional foods. The evaluation of cancer will indicate where cancer treatment is ineffective and wasteful, and offer alternative cancer care packages that are cost-effective and suited to low-resource settings. This review aims to  discuss  some  of  these  foods  and  the  chemoprotective  compounds  therein  to  aid further clinical studies. Foods investigated for their role in cancer risks and included in this review are: grapes, tomatoes, red peppers, berries, chestnut, ginseng, Rhodiola, green tea, soy, garlic, and cruciferous vegetables. This review also considered the so-called  antioxidant nutrients  –  selenium,  vitamins A,  B, C, D  and  E. Others include glucosamine, chondroitin, melatonin, MSM, which were taken as supplements. In the aspresent  review  cancer  prevention  by  use  of  functional  foods  is  reviewed  and  the possible  mechanisms  of  action  are  described  for  futuristic  developed  into  viable nutraceuticals that will be available worldwide for cancer patients worldwide.  KEYWORDS:  Functional  foods;  Nutraceuticals;  Antioxidants;  Cancer;  Prevention; Risks.