1. MUC1-C Dependence for the Progression of Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors Identifies a Druggable Target for the Treatment of This Rare Cancer.
- Author
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Ozawa, Hiroki, Haratake, Naoki, Nakashoji, Ayako, Daimon, Tatsuaki, Bhattacharya, Atrayee, Wang, Keyi, Shigeta, Keisuke, Fushimi, Atsushi, Fukuda, Kazumasa, Masugi, Yohei, Yamaguchi, Ryo, Kitago, Minoru, Kawakubo, Hirofumi, Kitagawa, Yuko, and Kufe, Donald
- Subjects
ONCOGENIC proteins ,NEUROENDOCRINE tumors ,PROGRESSION-free survival ,DISEASE progression ,TUMOR classification - Abstract
Patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (pNETs) have limited access to effective targeted agents and invariably succumb to progressive disease. MUC1-C is a druggable oncogenic protein linked to driving pan-cancers. There is no known involvement of MUC1-C in pNET progression. The present work was performed to determine if MUC1-C represents a potential target for advancing pNET treatment. We demonstrate that the MUC1 gene is upregulated in primary pNETs that progress with metastatic disease. In pNET cells, MUC1-C drives E2F- and MYC-signaling pathways necessary for survival. Targeting MUC1-C genetically and pharmacologically also inhibits self-renewal capacity and tumorigenicity. Studies of primary pNET tissues further demonstrate that MUC1-C expression is associated with (i) an advanced NET grade and pathological stage, (ii) metastatic disease, and (iii) decreased disease-free survival. These findings demonstrate that MUC1-C is necessary for pNET progression and is a novel target for treating these rare cancers with anti-MUC1-C agents under clinical development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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