Amplifying Curcumin's Antitumor Potential: A Heat-Driven Approach for Colorectal Cancer Treatment

Peritoneal metastases from colorectal cancer (CRC) present a significant clinical challenge with poor prognosis, often unresponsive to systemic chemotherapy. Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) combined with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) is a treatment approach for select patients. The use of curcumin, a natural compound with antitumor properties, in HIPEC is of interest due to its lower side effects compared to conventional drugs and potential for increased efficacy through direct delivery to the peritoneal cavity.

An in vitro hyperthermic model was developed to simulate clinical HIPEC conditions. Three colon cancer cell lines (SK-CO-1, COLO205, SNU-C1) representing different genetic mutations (p53, KRAS, BRAF) were treated with either curcumin (25 µM) or mitomycin-C (1 µM) for 1, 2, or 3 hours. Post-treatment, cells were incubated at 37°C (normothermia) or 42°C (hyperthermia). Cell viability and proliferation were assessed at 24, 48 and 72 hours post-treatment using Annexin V/PI, MTT assay, trypan blue exclusion, and Hoffman microscopy.

Hyperthermia significantly enhanced the antitumor efficacy of curcumin, evidenced by a two-fold reduction in cell viability compared to normothermia across all cell lines. In the SNU-C1 cell line, which harbors a p53 mutation, mitomycin-C failed to significantly impact cell viability, unlike curcumin, suggesting mutation-specific differences in treatment response.

The findings indicate that hyperthermia augments the antitumor effects of curcumin in vitro, supporting the hypothesis that curcumin could be a more effective HIPEC agent than traditional drugs like mitomycin-C. Mutation-associated differences in response to treatments were observed, particularly in p53 mutant cells. While further studies are needed, these preliminary results suggest that curcumin in HIPEC could represent a novel therapeutic strategy for CRC patients with peritoneal metastases. This approach may offer improved outcomes with fewer side effects, particularly in genetically distinct CRC subtypes.