Abstract

Cancer remains the most devastating disease that threatens public health with increasing incidence year by year worldwide. The anti-cancer property of naturally derived compounds appears to be a promising approach in cancer therapy. Terpenoids, generally known as terpenes, belong to the most abundant secondary metabolites class and extensively occur in various medicinal plants, fruits, and vegetables. Most of the terpenoids are non-toxic in nature and a ubiquitous part of the human diet. To date, approximately 50,000 terpenoids have been known in nature, and most of them have their use in traditional as well as modern medicinal systems. Based on the number of cyclic structures, terpenoids have been classified into eight main classes such as hemiterpenoids, monoterpenoids, sesquiterpenoids, diterpenoids, sesterterpenoids, triterpenoids, tetraterpenoids, and polyterpenoids. Terpenoids have shown several biological and pharmaceutical significances, including anticancer activity. The literature study revealed that terpenoids exhibit anticancer activity against various human cancers via inhibiting the initiation and progression of tumor growth in vitro and in vivo. In addition, many terpenoids inhibit cell proliferation, invasion, metastasis, and angiogenesis which promote apoptosis of various cancer cells via inhibiting various deregulated oncogenic intracellular signaling pathways. Moreover, the pre-clinical anticancer efficacy of terpenoids supports their clinical application as an anticancer therapeutic. This chapter attempts to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advancements and mechanistic progress on terpenoids as cancer therapeutic