Green tea for ovarian cancer prevention and treatment: a systematic review of the in vitro, in vivo and epidemiological studies.

OBJECTIVE: This systematic review was conducted to examine the effects of green tea or green tea components on the prevention and progression of epithelial ovarian cancer. METHODS: Using Medline, EMBASE and SciVerse (last researched: July 2011), we retrieved 22 articles including 5 epidemiological studies. RESULTS: In epithelial ovarian cancer cell lines, green tea and green tea components have been shown to downregulate the expression of proteins involved in inflammation, cell signalization, cell motility and angiogenesis. Green tea and green tea components would induce apoptosis and could potentiate the effects of cisplatin, a chemotherapeutic agent. In human observational studies, significant associations between green tea intake and both decreased ovarian cancer occurrence and better prognosis were reported. CONCLUSIONS: Available literature suggests potential molecular targets for green tea in ovarian cancer treatment and also provides data supporting the clinical evaluation of the role of green tea or green tea components in ovarian cancer prevention and treatment.