Title:Targeting Tumor Angiogenesis in Gastrointestinal Malignancies
Volume: 4
Issue: 1
Author(s): Paul R. Kunk, Erika Ramsdale and Osama E. Rahma
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Anti-angiogenesis, bevacizumab, GI cancer, tumor angiogenesis, Tyrosine kinase inhibitor,
VEGF.
Abstract: Gastrointestinal [GI] malignancies are common and frequently lethal
neoplasms. As our understanding of GI cancers deepens, more pathways are discovered
that play key roles in tumorigenesis and metastasis. Angiogenesis has
emerged as a critical pathway in many cancers, particularly in GI cancers. The discovery
of a complex network of signals, including vascular epithelial growth factor
[VEGF], led to the emergence of a new class of cancer therapies targeting angiogenesis.
Bevacizumab was the first to emerge, gaining US Food and Drug Administration [FDA]
approval in 2004 for the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer; since then, several antiangiogenic
agents have become clinically available, and numerous others are in clinical or preclinical
testing. This review will focus on anti-angiogenesis therapies in GI malignancies.
