Bone metastases in the era of targeted treatments: insights from molecular biology.

Bone metastases in the era of targeted treatments: insights from molecular biology. Q J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2019 Jul 11;: Authors: Dewulf J, Vangestel C, Verhoeven Y, van Dam P, Elvas F, van den Wyngaert T, Clézardin P Abstract Bone metastases remain a common feature of advanced cancers and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Recent research has identified promising novel treatment targets to improve current treatment strategies for bone metastatic disease. This review summarizes the well-known and recently discovered molecular biology pathways in bone that govern normal physiological remodelling or drive the pathophysiological changes observed when bone metastases are present. In the rapidly changing world of targeted cancer treatments, it is important to recognize the specific treatment effects induced in bone by these agents and the potential impact on common imaging strategies. The osteoclastic targets (bisphosphonates, LGR4, RANKL, mTOR, MET-VEGFR, cathepsin K, Src, Dock 5) and the osteoblastic targets (Wnt and endothelin) are discussed, and the emerging field of osteo-immunity is introduced as potential future therapeutic target. Finally, a summary is provided of available trial data for agents that target these pathways and that have been assessed in patients. The ultimate goal of research into novel pathways and targets involved in the tumour-bone microenvironment is to tackle one of the great remainin...
Source: Quarterly Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging - Category: Nuclear Medicine Tags: Q J Nucl Med Mol Imaging Source Type: research