Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C) for Ovarian Cancer

EGFR Inhibition (Dash 2015)#

• I3C and DIM show significant inhibitory activity against EGFR tyrosine kinase in platinum-resistant OC (molecular docking + ADME)
• Source:^{[1]In silico analysis of indole-3-carbinol and its metabolite DIM as EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors in platinum resistant ovarian cancerDash R, Hosen SMZ, Karim MR et al. · 2015Open reference 1 ↓} (computational prediction)

Bortezomib Sensitization (Taylor-Harding 2012)#

• I3C sensitized OC cell lines to bortezomib; combination caused cell cycle arrest and apoptosis via ER stress and cytoskeletal disruption
• In vivo co-treatment significantly inhibited tumor growth in mice
• Source:^{[2]Indole-3-carbinol synergistically sensitises ovarian cancer cells to bortezomib treatmentTaylor-Harding B, Agadjanian H, Nassanian H et al. · 2012Open reference 2 ↓} (in vitro + animal model)

Cisplatin Chemoprotection (Zhu 2026)#

• I3C alleviates cisplatin-induced ovarian damage by inhibiting fibrosis through TGF-beta1/Smad pathway
• Preserves ovarian function during chemotherapy
• Source:^{[3]Indole-3-carbinol alleviates cisplatin-induced ovarian damage by inhibiting ovarian fibrosis through the TGF-beta1/Smad pathwayZhu F, Li F, Zhang R et al. · 2026Open reference 3 ↓} (animal model)

Clinical Context#

I3C is available as a dietary supplement and from cruciferous vegetable consumption. The safety profile is well-established. The gap is human clinical trial data specifically in OC—preclinical evidence across three independent mechanisms argues strongly for clinical investigation.