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Dietary sulforaphane in cancer chemoprevention: epigenetic regulation and PRMT5-MEP50 complex inhibition-a systematic review

Ping Yan, Changfeng Sun, Cunliang Deng
Frontiers in Pharmacology 2026 17:1865620

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 42614280
PubMed Central
PMC13481378
DOI
10.3389/fphar.2026.1865620
Funding
The authors declared that no financial support was received for the work or its publication.
Competing interests
The authors declared no commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Study snapshot

DesignSystematic review
ModelHuman clinical and observational studies plus preclinical cancer models
Sample118 studies: 17 clinical trials, 31 observational studies and 70 preclinical studies
InterventionSulforaphane or sulforaphane-rich dietary interventions across heterogeneous clinical and preclinical studies.
DurationVariable across included studies
EndpointsCancer-related biomarkers; Cell proliferation markers; Histone acetylation and epigenetic endpoints; Tumor suppressor gene expression; Safety and tolerability; Preclinical PRMT5-MEP50 mechanisms

What the study showed, in plain terms

This 2026 systematic review summarizes 118 sulforaphane studies across clinical, observational and preclinical research. Human evidence is most developed for biomarker and early chemoprevention endpoints; the review does not establish that sulforaphane prevents cancer or treats established cancer.

Key findings

The review highlights emerging human biomarker evidence, including the 2025 former-smoker Phase II trial, alongside extensive mechanistic work on epigenetic regulation and PRMT5-MEP50. It calls for adequately powered Phase III prevention trials with clinical endpoints before chemopreventive efficacy can be established.

What this study can and cannot tell us

The evidence base mixes clinical trials, observational research and preclinical studies with diverse formulations, populations and endpoints. Many human findings are surrogate or biomarker outcomes rather than cancer incidence, recurrence or survival outcomes.

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Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction Dr. Amr Yasser, PhDCardiometabolic, Musculoskeletal, Gut & Bioavailability Dr. Abdulla Mostafa, PhDCellular Senescence, Neurological, Mitochondrial & Brain-Ageing Biology