Lycopene and cancer

Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide. Nutritional factors have been suggested to play an important role in the prevention of cancers. It has been estimated that nearly one-third of all cancer deaths could be prevented with dietary modification. Several types of dietary antioxidants have shown considerable promise as effective agents for cancer prevention by reducing oxidative stress, which has been implicated in the development of cancer. Of all carotenoids, the effect of lycopene on the reduction of cancer risk has been studied the most. The lycopene and cancer relationship is reviewed in this paper.