Current Cancer Drug Targets - Volume 10, Issue 1, 2010

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Background: The development of resistance to endocrine agents is a major issue in the treatment of ER-positive breast cancer patients. Evidence of cross-talk among signaling pathways and recent advances in understanding biology of this neoplasm have led to the new concept of hormone-biological therapy. Aims: The main aim of this review was to comprehensively examine ongoing and concluded clinical trials about endoc Read More

Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is a rare, highly aggressive tumor that arises from the surface serosal cells (pleural, peritoneal and pericardial cavities). Epidemiological and clinical data show that there is an association between asbestos exposure and MM development, even if the exact mechanism whereby asbestos induces MM is unknown. The continuing identification and elucidation of the molecular defects involved in Read More

The broad antimicrobial and antitumoral reactivity of Vγ9Vδ2 T cells, their ability to produce inflammatory cytokines involved in protective immunity against intracellular pathogens and tumors and their strong cytolytic and bactericidal activities suggest their direct involvement in immune control of cancers and infections. γδ T cells can be selectively activated by naturally occurring or synthetic phosphoantigens, an Read More

Targeting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway represents a successful strategy in the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Since the approval of the first antiangiogenic drug, the anti-VEGF monoclonal antibody bevacizumab, a number of other molecules have been tested in preliminary trials and are currently under investigation in phase III randomized studies. At present, no clinical tools are av Read More

New emerging data suggest that bisphosphonates may exert antitumor properties. Preclinical studies have demonstrated that zoledronic acid (ZA) can induce direct and indirect antitumor activities such as inhibition of angiogenesis, invasion and adhesion of tumor cells, and overall tumor progression, stimulation of adoptive and innate immunity and emerging evidence suggests that the use of these agents may prevent th Read More

Bortezomib is a proteasome inhibitor. It targets the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway with subsequent inhibition of the degradation of proteins involved in cell cycle regulation and cancer cell survival. The best known molecular mechanism concerns the inhibition of IκB breakdown and the related stabilization of NFκB, thus preventing its translocation to the nucleus for the activation of downstream pathways. Bortezomib is t Read More

Recent insights into the molecular pathogenesis of colorectal cancer (CRC) have given rise to specific targetdirected therapies, including monoclonal antibodies (mAb) against epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). These drugs have been approved as first, second and third line therapies for metastatic CRC (mCRC) and the advent of target-specific cancer therapeutics Read More

Cetuximab (IMC-C225, Erbitux ImClone Systems Inc, New York, NY) is a recombinant, human/mouse chimeric monoclonal antibody (MAb) that binds specifically to the extracellular domain of the human epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) on both normal and tumor cells, and competitively inhibits the binding of epidermal growth factor (EGF) as well as other ligands. Cetuximab binding to the EGFR blocks phosphorylation and Read More

Although Bid is considered to be a cell apoptotic mediator, current studies suggest that it has a possible role in cell survival for mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) in response to low doses of anti-(±)-5- methylchrysene-1,2-diol- 3,4-epoxide (≤0.25μM) (5-MCDE). We found that the exposure of MEFs to 0.25 μM 5-MCDE resulted in a slight apoptotic induction, while this apoptotic response was substantially increased in the Bid kno Read More

Tumors of the epithelial surface account for about 80% of all ovarian neoplasms and exhibit a heterogeneous histological classification affecting survival. Tumors of low malignant potential, defined as borderline ovarian tumors (BOTs), have a markedly better survival and low recurrence, even if surgery still represents the common management for this type of cancer. It is still debated in the literature if BOTs can be considered Read More

Despite recent advancements in treatment modalities, the overall survival and quality of life of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) have not significantly improved over the past decade. With the increasing emergency of new biological agents, the development of novel treatment schemes based on cancer cell biology may be promising for this group of patients. We previously introd Read More