Resveratrol in cancer chemotherapy: Is it a preventer, protector, or fighter?

Cancer is a virulent disease that is regarded as a black-hearted and evil-minded illness in many human civilizations because it develops silently and without warning until it reaches a lifethreatening stage. In the management of cancer, chemotherapy represents the principal option but has significant toxic effects that negatively influence the patient s physiology and psychology. To improve the chemotherapy efficacy, scientists proposed several adjuvant approaches, including the use of fighters with an additive effect that reduces the chemotherapeutic agent dose, and thus the occurrence of toxic effects, protectors to preserve normal tissues, and preventers by inducing apoptosis in cancerous cells as they develop. It seems that nature can provide these adjuvant agents with high quality. Resveratrol is one of the most studied natural agents due to its promising effects in cancer treatment. This review aimed to highlight these effects based on exploring the most recent information concerning this natural polyhydroxy product. The authors concluded that resveratrol can act as a potential chemotherapy alleviator by inhibiting carcinogenesis and many of its initiating enzymes and proteins, modulating many chemotherapy-related toxic effects, and potentiating the toxic effects inside cancerous cells via multiple pathways.