She was the lead investigator in a study of curcumin. She says her team of researchers found the spice may interfere with the way some viruses cause human cells to stop reacting to an infection. She hopes the team can discover drug treatments to defeat several kinds of viruses. And, she says, it is possible curcumin will be part of those cures. ​​A study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry found that curcumin improves the effectiveness of chemotherapy in breast cancer patients. And it has possibilities for development into a drug that can help with chemotherapy.