Cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled proliferation of cells, and
it is caused due to the complex interaction of many cancer-causing factors that change
the normal functioning of some genes; these factors may be internal causing mutation,
or they may be ecotoxic carcinogens. Ecotoxic carcinogens are the agents that are
present in our environment and exposure to them can increase the risk of cancer. These
include aflatoxins, arsenic, asbestos, coke-oven emissions, tobacco smoke, wood dust,
and indoor emissions from the household combustion of coal, etc. Nature has provided
us with an enormous source of natural compounds which have application in various
fields such as medicine, cosmetics industry, food, and nutrition, etc. Nature and the
natural compounds are serving as a boon to mankind. The medicinal application of
natural compounds is one of the most prominent applications of plant products. Plant
products have been playing a very important role in the treatment of cancer, as many
anticancer drugs have been developed from plant products, such as vinca alkaloids
(vinblastine, vincristine, and vindesine), the epipodophyllotoxins (etoposide and
teniposide), the taxanes (paclitaxel and docetaxel) and the camptothecin derivatives
(camptothecin and irinotecan), etc. The plant-derived anti-cancer drugs have benefits
such as easy availability, cost-effectiveness, and fewer side effects. This book chapter
will emphasize the various ecotoxic carcinogens and numerous plant-derived anticancer
drugs, with their mechanism of action.
Keywords: Amphiboles, Anthropogenic, Apoptosis, Chromosomal aberrations,
DNA adducts, DNA methylation, Genotoxic, Nitropolyaromatic, Oncogenes.
