Research progresses of the roles of disulfiram in anticancer activity and radiobiology

Disulfiram (DSF) has been widely used in clinical treatment of alcoholism. To date, in vivo and in vitro experiments have demonstrated that DSF has strong anti-cancer activity and could improve patient′s survival, and the underlying mechanism has been elaborated. In addition, it was reported that, during radiotherapy, DSF could protect normal tissue and cells meanwhile enhance the radiosensitivity of tumor cells by forming complexes with copper ions, suppressing cancer stem cells and inhibiting ubiquitin-proteasome system activity in cancer cells. This review summarizes the completed and ongoing clinical trials of disulfiram, and its anti-tumor mechanisms and advances in radiation biology. Key words: Disulfiram; Cancer; Clinical studies; Molecular mechanism; Radiosensitivity