Epigenetic mechanisms in breast cancer therapy and resistance.
review · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 33741974.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-021-22024-3 and PMC identifier 7979820.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
The majority of breast cancers express the estrogen receptor (ERα) and agents targeting this pathway represent the main treatment modality. Endocrine therapy has proven successful in the treatment of hormone-responsive breast cancer since its early adoption in the 1940s as an ablative therapy. Unfortunately, therapeutic resistance arises, leading to disease recurrence and relapse. Recent studies increased our understanding in how changes to the chromatin landscape and deregulation of epigenetic factors orchestrate the resistant phenotype. Here, we will discuss how the epigenome is an integral determinant in hormone therapy response and why epigenetic factors are promising targets for overcoming clinical resistance.
Medical subject headings
- Breast Neoplasms
- Epigenesis, Genetic
- Epigenomics
- Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic