Though downregulation of VEGF may have beneficial effects in the treatment of diabetic retinopathy and choroidal neovascularization, systemic administration of curcumin in other clinical settings, e.g., in the treatment of cancer, may have detrimental effects because VEGF is also constitutively released from the RPE under normal conditions; the constitutively released VEGF is critical in the maintenance of the healthy choriocapillaris [42]. Here, VEGFA is linked to diabetic retinopathy.