Disclosed is the use of angiotensin-(1-7) peptide as an anti-cancer and chemoprevention therapeutic. Embodiments of the present invention comprise methods and compositions to prevent cancer or to reduce the risk of cancer in an individual comprising administering to the individual a pharmaceutically effective amount of an agonist for the angiotensin-(1-7) receptor to inhibit at least one of formation of a tumor (tumorigenesis), the proliferation of tumor cells, the growth of tumor cells, or metastasis of tumor cells in the individual. Cancers treated using the methods and compositions described herein may include cancers having an angiotensin-(1-7) receptor, including, but not limited to, breast cancer, colon cancer, glioblastoma, and lung cancer.
