Background: Current treatments for various types of cancer include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Due to the toxic effects of some treatments, including chemotherapeutic agents, much research has been done recently to reduce their side effects in treatment protocols. Researchers have reported that substances secreted by certain bacteria, including lactic acid bacteria, can be used as alternative treatments alongside mainstream therapies such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Methods: Data on the use of lactic acid bacteria in the treatment of various cancer cell lines in vitro and in vivo from 2015 to 2024 were collected and analyzed from websites such as SID, PUBMED, NATURE, and Scopus via the Google Scholar search engine. Results: In vitro studies on cell lines such as Caco-2, HT29, CT26, A549, K562, AGS, SiHa, KB, and OSCC have shown that bacterial extracts and cell walls of Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus paracasei, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus brevis isolated from local dairy products sometimes alone and sometimes in combination with certain drugs such as coumarin and cisplatin and the toxin microcystin inhibited tumor cell proliferation and induced dose-dependent apoptosis. In-vivo studies Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, and Lactobacillus plantarum were added to the diet of a group of mice inoculated with tumors. The size of the tumors was subsequently measured, and it was found that the tumors had become smaller after several weeks of feeding with these probiotics. Conclusion: Cellular extracts from lactic acid bacteria have a growth-inhibiting effect and induce apoptosis in various cancer cell lines including Caco-2, HT29, CT26, K562, A549, AGS, SiHa, KB, and OSCC. They can be used as compounds alongside chemotherapy and radiation therapy in the dietary regimen of cancer patients.
