A plant-based drug called APG-157 has shown signs of helping patients fight oral and oropharyngeal cancers, according to a phase I clinical trial led by the University of California at Los Angeles Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The botanical drug comprises multiple compounds produced by plants, including curcumin. Treatment with it resulted in high concentrations of curcumin and its byproducts circulating in the blood and absorbed by tumor tissues within three hours after being taken orally.

APG-157 reduced the concentration of cytokines, the proteins involved in inflammation, in the saliva when administered to cancer patients. The therapy also reduced the relative abundance of Bacteroides species, a group of gram-negative bacteria.

Gram-negative refers to a group of dangerous bacteria with an outer layer that hides them from the immune system. The relative abundance of gram-negative bacteria compared to the presence of other types of bacteria is correlated with oral cancer.