title: Targeting specific molecular pathways holds promise for advanced gallbladder cancer therapy.
abstract: Gallbladder cancer is the most common and aggressive malignancy of the biliary tract. The complete surgical resection is the only potentially curative approach in early stage; however, most cases are diagnosed in advanced stages and the response to traditional chemotherapy and radiotherapy is extremely limited, with modest impact in overall survival. The recent progress in understanding the molecular alterations of gallbladder cancer has shown great promise for the development of more effective treatment strategies. This has mainly resulted from the identification of molecular alterations in relevant intracellular signaling pathways-Hedgehog, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, Notch, ErbB, MAPK and angiogenesis-which are potential tailored targets for gallbladder cancer patients. This review discusses the recent remarkable progress in understanding the molecular alterations that represent novel prognosis molecular markers and therapeutic targets for gallbladder cancer, which will provide opportunities for research and for developing innovative strategies that may enhance the benefit of conventional chemotherapy, or eventually modify the fatal natural history of this orphan disease.
authors: Department of Pathology, Center for Investigation in Translational Oncology (CITO), School of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile.
authors: Carolina
authors: C
authors: Bizama
authors: Department of Pathology, Center for Investigation in Translational Oncology (CITO), School of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile.
authors: Patricia
authors: P
authors: García
authors: Department of Pathology, Center for Investigation in Translational Oncology (CITO), School of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile.
authors: Jaime A
authors: JA
authors: Espinoza
authors: Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Universidad de La Frontera, CEGIN-BIOREN, Temuco 4811230, Chile.
authors: Helga
authors: H
authors: Weber
authors: Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Universidad de La Frontera, CEGIN-BIOREN, Temuco 4811230, Chile.
authors: Pamela
authors: P
authors: Leal
authors: Department of Hematology Oncology, School of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 26767000, Chile.
authors: Bruno
authors: B
authors: Nervi
authors: Department of Pathology, Center for Investigation in Translational Oncology (CITO), School of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile; Advanced Center for Chronic Diseases (ACCDiS), Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile. Electronic address: jcroas@gmail.com.
authors: Juan Carlos
authors: JC
authors: Roa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005706:Gallbladder Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*
keywords: Directing rational cancer therapy; Gallbladder cancer; Genetic and epigenetic alterations; Intracellular pathways