2021年，乳腺癌在癌症病例中占很大比例，是全球女性癌症死亡的第二大原因。肿瘤细胞虽然起源于人体内的正常细胞，但由于癌细胞的基因结构和功能的变化而具有与正常细胞不同的生物学特性。这些显着特征被称为癌细胞的标志，与正常细胞不同。其特征主要包括高代谢活性、线粒体功能障碍和细胞死亡抵抗力。目前的证据表明，肿瘤细胞的基本特征影响肿瘤细胞的组织结构、功能和代谢及其内外环境。因此，肿瘤细胞的这些基本特征使肿瘤细胞能够增殖、侵袭并避免凋亡。改变肿瘤细胞的这些特征代表了一种新的、有潜力的肿瘤治疗方法。乳腺癌治疗的关键在于考虑患者肿瘤细胞的具体类型，找到对正常细胞毒性最小的最佳治疗药物。一些草药中含有的活性成分恰恰可以达到这个目的。本文介绍了人参皂苷通过改变肿瘤细胞的功能特征来达到乳腺癌治疗效果的机制和研究意义，为人参皂苷作为乳腺癌治疗药物的潜在应用提供了新的视角。© 2023. International中华医学会及生物医学中心有限公司

In 2021, breast cancer accounted for a substantial proportion of cancer cases and represented the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women worldwide. Although tumor cells originate from normal cells in the human body, they possess distinct biological characteristics resulting from changes in gene structure and function of cancer cells in contrast with normal cells. These distinguishing features, known as hallmarks of cancer cells, differ from those of normal cells. The hallmarks primarily include high metabolic activity, mitochondrial dysfunction, and resistance to cell death. Current evidence suggests that the fundamental hallmarks of tumor cells affect the tissue structure, function, and metabolism of tumor cells and their internal and external environment. Therefore, these fundamental hallmarks of tumor cells enable tumor cells to proliferate, invade and avoid apoptosis. Modifying these hallmarks of tumor cells represents a new and potentially promising approach to tumor treatment. The key to breast cancer treatment lies in identifying the optimal therapeutic agent with minimal toxicity to normal cells, considering the specific types of tumor cells in patients. Some herbal medicines contain active ingredients which can precisely achieve this purpose. In this review, we introduce Ginsenoside's mechanism and research significance in achieving the therapeutic effect of breast cancer by changing the functional hallmarks of tumor cells, providing a new perspective for the potential application of Ginsenoside as a therapeutic drug for breast cancer.© 2023. International Society for Chinese Medicine and BioMed Central Ltd.