单宁是一类异质性的多酚类天然产物，具有有望作为癌症化学预防和治疗药物的潜力。过去30年里进行的研究表明，单宁能够针对癌症发展中重要的细胞途径和分子。最近，有报道显示单宁可能在抗癌活性中起到重要作用的新机制，例如抑制上皮-间质转化、减少癌症干细胞的产生和调节癌细胞代谢。除了单宁的作用机制外，本综述还着重讨论了它们作为辅助治疗中化疗增敏剂和克服多药耐药的潜在应用。此外，一些单宁的特征理化性质，尤其是单宁酸，可以用于制备用于抗癌药物的纳米载体或者分离循环着的癌细胞。这些单宁的新潜在应用值得进一步研究。缺乏的精心设计的临床试验是必要的，以评估单宁自身或作为癌症治疗辅助剂的疗效。本文受版权保护。保留所有权利。

Tannins are the heterogenous class of polyphenolic natural products with promising cancer chemopreventive and therapeutic potential. Studies undertaken over the last 30 years demonstrated their capacity to target many cellular pathways and molecules important in the development of cancer. Recently, new mechanisms which might be important in anticarcinogenic activity, such as inhibition of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, reduction of cancer stem cell creation, and modulation of cancer cells metabolism were described. Besides the mechanisms of tannins' activity, this review focuses on their possible application as chemosensitizers in adjuvant therapy and countering multidrug resistance. Furthermore, characteristic physicochemical properties of some tannins, particularly tannic acid, are found useful in the formation of nano-vehicles for anti-cancer drugs or the isolation of circulating cancer cells. These new potential applications of tannins deserve further studies. Well-designed clinical trials, which are scarce, are necessary to assess the therapeutic effects of tannins themselves or as adjuvants in cancer treatment.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.