title: Trends in the development of MET inhibitors for hepatocellular carcinoma.
abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma is the third most common cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The multikinase inhibitor sorafenib has improved survival and is now considered the standard of care; however, the benefits are still disappointing, and thus, new effective treatments are required. In human hepatocellular carcinoma, MET, which is encoded by the HGFR gene, is activated by amplification, overexpression or mutation, and it has recently emerged as a possible therapeutic target in various tumors including hepatocellular carcinoma. In fact, some drugs targeting the HGF/MET axis are currently under investigation in clinical trials. Here, we review the role of MET and trends in the development of MET inhibitors for hepatocellular carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Therapeutics, National Cancer Center, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Hitomi S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Okuma
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Therapeutics, National Cancer Center, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Shunsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kondo
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors; C491743:MET protein, human; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met
keywords: HGF; MET; biomarkers; clinical trials; hepatocellular carcinoma