Spices like garlic and turmeric can boost immune system, improve the liver's detoxifying potential, curcumin in turmeric is useful to inhibit cancer growth and disarm the body of several carcinogens, researchers have found. A team of experts at a reputed American University discovered that, the main ingredient in turmeric (haldi), a chemical compound called curcumin, enhances the effects of the chemotherapy drug cisplatin, which is commonly used to treat head and neck cancers, in addition to radiation. Curcumin has been found to help curb the growth of breast, colon and pancreatic cancers.