title: Targeting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway in iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC): from bench to bedside.
abstract: Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy, representing 1% of all human malignancies; its incidence has been escalating worldwide during the last decades. In recent years important molecular pathways contributing to tumor progression and worse survival rates have been identified in iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) with the consequent development of molecular therapeutics to target these specific oncogenic pathways. For example, a positive correlation has been found between expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and a more aggressive phenotype of DTC. This has led to the widespread adoption of VEGF-targeted therapeutics in the preclinical and clinical settings. In this review we will provide an overview of the different aspects of the use of VEGF-pathway-oriented treatments in iodine-refractory DTC with particular focus on future prospects.
authors.affiliation: Clinical oncology department, Faculty of medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. Electronic address: omar.abdelrhman@med.asu.edu.eg.
authors.forename: Omar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Abdel-Rahman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D007455:Iodine; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D011379:Prognosis; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D042442:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors; D042442:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors; D007455:Iodine
keywords: Iodine-refractory; Sorafenib; Sunitinib; Systemic therapy; Thyroid carcinoma; VEGF