Emerging evidence for CHFR as a cancer biomarker: from tumor biology to precision medicine

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Sarah Derks, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Arjen H. G. Cleven, Maastricht University; Veerle Melotte, Maastricht University; Kim M. Smits, Maastricht University; Johann Brandes, Emory University; Nilofer Azad, Johns Hopkins University; Wim van Criekinge, Ghent University; Adriaan P. de Bruine, Maastricht University; James G. Herman, Johns Hopkins University; Manon van Engeland, Maastricht University
• Language: English
• Date: 2014-03-01
• Publisher: Springer Verlag (Germany)
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2013 The Author(s).
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10555-013-9462-4
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Cancer and Metastasis Reviews
• ISSN: 0167-7659
• Volume: 33
• Issue: 1
• Start Page: 161
• End Page: 171
• Grant/Funding Information: JB is supported by the Department of Veterans Affairs Career Development Award-2 (7IK2BX001283-2).; SD is financially supported by the Dutch Cancer Society (VU 2012-5351).; This work was performed within the framework of CTMM, the Center for Translational Molecular Medicine, project DeCoDe (grant 03O-101).
• Keywords: ONCOLOGY; RING-FINGER DOMAIN; CPG ISLAND HYPERMETHYLATION; STRESS CHECKPOINT; POLO-LIKE KINASE-1; Taxane sensitivity; PROMOTER HYPERMETHYLATION; CHFR promoter methylation; EPIGENETIC INACTIVATION; CELL LUNG-CANCER; Oncology; GASTRIC-CANCER; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; COLORECTAL-CANCER; Predictive biomarker; Science & Technology; MITOTIC CHECKPOINT PROTEIN
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Oncology

Abstract

Novel insights in the biology of cancer have switched the paradigm of a "one-size-fits-all" cancer treatment to an individualized biology-driven treatment approach. In recent years, a diversity of biomarkers and targeted therapies has been discovered. Although these examples accentuate the promise of personalized cancer treatment, for most cancers and cancer subgroups no biomarkers and effective targeted therapy are available. The great majority of patients still receive unselected standard therapies with no use of their individual molecular characteristics. Better knowledge about the underlying tumor biology will lead the way toward personalized cancer treatment. In this review, we summarize the evidence for a promising cancer biomarker: checkpoint with forkhead and ring finger domains (CHFR). CHFR is a mitotic checkpoint and tumor suppressor gene, which is inactivated in a diverse group of solid malignancies, mostly by promoter CpG island methylation. CHFR inactivation has shown to be an indicator of poor prognosis and sensitivity to taxane-based chemotherapy. Here we summarize the current knowledge of altered CHFR expression in cancer, the impact on tumor biology and implications for personalized cancer treatment.