Curcumin for the Prevention of Colon Cancer

Inclusion Criteria

• •DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• •Healthy men and women age 18 and over
• •PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• •Age:
• •18 and over
• •Performance status:
• •Not specified
• •Life expectancy:
• •Not specified
• •Hematopoietic:
• •WBC greater than 4,000/mm3
• •Hemoglobin greater than 12 g/dL
• •Platelet count greater than 120,000/mm3
• •Hepatic:
• •ALT/AST less than 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• •Alkaline phosphatase less than 1.5 times ULN
• •Bilirubin less than 1.5 mg/dL
• •Renal:
• •Creatinine less than 1.7 mg/dL
• •Other:
• •Not pregnant or nursing
• •Negative pregnancy test
• •Fertile patients must use effective contraception
• •No prior cancer except surgically resected basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer
• •No history of peptic ulcer disease, gastrointestinal bleeding from gastric or duodenal ulcers, or gastrin secreting tumors
• •No history of unreliability or noncompliance (missing pretreatment appointment more than twice)
• •PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• •Biologic therapy:
• •Not specified
• •Chemotherapy:
• •Not specified
• •Endocrine therapy:
• •At least 14 days since prior steroids
• •Radiotherapy:
• •Not specified
• •Surgery:
• •Not specified
• •Other:
• •At least 14 days since prior curcumin (turmeric) rich foods
• •At least 14 days since prior nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
• •No chronic medications (i.e., daily for more than 28 days) except for oral contraceptives
• •No concurrent coumadin or other anticoagulants