title: Lymphangiogenesis and colorectal cancer.
abstract: Lymphatic metastasis is an important event in the progress of metastasis in colorectal cancer (CRC). The purpose of this article is to assess the role of lymphangiogenesis on CRC. In peritumoral areas of CRC, the lymphatic microvessel density (LMVD) is higher than those in normal colorectal tissues. Morever, the high LMVD is correlated with DFS and local recurrence in CRC. The VEGF-C/VEGF-D/VEGFR-3 pathway, sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway and extracellular matrix (ECM) are involved in the regulation of lymphangiogenesis in CRC. Inhibition of the VEGF-C/VEGF-D/VEGFR-3 pathway by specific antibodies has been reported to efficiently inhibit experimental tumor lymphangiogenesis and metastasis in animal experiments. Although lymphangiogenesis has been reported to play an important role in the occurrence of colon cancer and to be associated with prognosis, it remains unclear whether it is a valid therapeutic target molecule. Further study of the potential of targeting this process for anti-lymphatic therapies is worthwhile.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, Wuxi Second Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Jiangsu, China. E-mail. iamyigang@126.com.
authors.forename: Ciyou
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Yigang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000378:metabolism; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology*; D042583:Lymphangiogenesis; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D042601:Lymphatic Vessels / Q000473:pathology*; D055806:Microvessels / Q000473:pathology*; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D011379:Prognosis; D015398:Signal Transduction; D042582:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor C / Q000378:metabolism; D042643:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor D / Q000378:metabolism; D040321:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-3 / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; D042582:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor C; D042643:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor D; D040321:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-3