Mechanisms of resistance to ionizing radiation in rectal cancer

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

32 Scopus citations

Abstract

While patients with breast cancers are not subjected to the adverse side effects of tamoxifen or trastuzumab if their tumors are negative for estrogen, progesterone or Her-2/Neu, neoadjuvant ionizing radiation with concurrent chemotherapeutic agents is administered almost universally to patients with stage II/III rectal cancers. There is, however, a tremendously wide range of response to this preoperative modality from complete pathological response to continuous tumor growth in patients receiving the same form of treatment. The specific phenotype of the tumor plays a major role in rendering tumor cells survival advantage to the cytotoxic effects of chemoradiation. Pathways such as proliferation, cell cycle, apoptosis and hypoxia have been investigated under a variety of conditions in preirradiated tissues and postirradiated tumors. This article reviews the current evidence available to identify a molecular profile predictive of the best response to ionizing radiation.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)469-480
Number of pages12
JournalExpert Review of Molecular Diagnostics
Volume9
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2009

Keywords

  • Angiogenesis
  • Apoptosis
  • Clonogenic study
  • Complete pathological response
  • Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor
  • Ionizing radiation
  • Radiation therapy
  • VEGF

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pathology and Forensic Medicine
  • Molecular Medicine
  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics

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