Role of DNA methylation in head and neck cancer
Open Access
- 9 July 2011
- journal article
- website
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Clinical Epigenetics
- Vol. 2 (2), 123-150
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s13148-011-0045-3
Abstract
Head and neck cancer (HNC) is a heterogenous and complex entity including diverse anatomical sites and a variety of tumor types displaying unique characteristics and different etilogies. Both environmental and genetic factors play a role in the development of the disease, but the underlying mechanism is still far from clear. Previous studies suggest that alterations in the genes acting in cellular signal pathways may contribute to head and neck carcinogenesis. In cancer, DNA methylation patterns display specific aberrations even in the early and precancerous stages and may confer susceptibility to further genetic or epigenetic changes. Silencing of the genes by hypermethylation or induction of oncogenes by promoter hypomethylation are frequent mechanisms in different types of cancer and achieve increasing diagnostic and therapeutic importance since the changes are reversible. Therefore, methylation analysis may provide promising clinical applications, including the development of new biomarkers and prediction of the therapeutic response or prognosis. In this review, we aimed to analyze the available information indicating a role for the epigenetic changes in HNC.This publication has 153 references indexed in Scilit:
- A survey of methylated candidate tumor suppressor genes in nasopharyngeal carcinomaInternational Journal of Cancer, 2011
- Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors in recent clinical trials for cancer therapyClinical Epigenetics, 2010
- Novel approaches to global mining of aberrantly methylated promoter sites in squamous head and neck cancerOtolaryngology -- Head and Neck Surgery, 2010
- Promoter hypermethylation in Indian primary oral squamous cell carcinomaInternational Journal of Cancer, 2010
- KIF1A and EDNRB are differentially methylated in primary HNSCC and salivary rinsesInternational Journal of Cancer, 2010
- Loss of epigenetic silencing in tumors preferentially affects primate-specific retroelementsGene, 2009
- Cytoglobin is upregulated by tumour hypoxia and silenced by promoter hypermethylation in head and neck cancerBritish Journal of Cancer, 2009
- Quantitative methylation analyses of resection margins predict local recurrences and disease-specific deaths in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinomasBritish Journal of Cancer, 2008
- The role of PGP9.5 as a tumor suppressor gene in human cancerInternational Journal of Cancer, 2008
- DNA methylation: a marker for carcinogen exposure and cancer riskEnvironmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 2007