Role of Glucosamine and Chondroitin in the Prevention of Cancer: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

The anti-inflammatory properties of glucosamine and chondroitin suggest that they may have potential effects in cancer prevention. We performed this meta-analysis to assess the protective function of glucosamine and/or chondroitin intake against cancer risk. We searched the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases. The odds ratio (OR), corresponding to the 95% confidence interval (95% CI), was used to assess the association between chondroitin and/or glucosamine intake and cancer risk. Thirteen studies met the inclusion criteria, with 1,690,918 participants and 55,045 cancer cases. Overall, chondroitin and/or glucosamine intake was associated with a lower risk of colorectal cancer (OR = 0.91, 95% CI, 0.87–0.94) and lung cancer (OR = 0.84, 95% CI, 0.79–0.89). Subgroup analysis supported the protective effect of different SYSADOAs (chondroitin and/or glucosamine) intake. However, the protective effect was not observed in the only chondroitin intake group and in the NSAIDs group. Our meta-analysis found that the intake of glucosamine and/or chondroitin decreased the risk of colorectal and lung cancers. Moreover, NSAIDs use may have a synergistic protective effect.

Conflicts of Interests Statement

The authors have no financial interests nor any other conflicts of interest related to this study.

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Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.