Possible applications of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors to overcome drug resistance in melanoma cells
July 31, 2022
Abstract
Melanoma is considered one of the most aggressive skin cancers. It spreads and metastasizes quickly and is intrinsically resistant to most conventional chemotherapeutics, thereby presenting a challenge to researchers and clinicians searching for effective therapeutic strategies to treat patients with melanoma. The use of inhibitors of mutated serine/threonine-protein kinase B-RAF (BRAF), e.g., vemurafenib and dabrafenib, has revolutionized melanoma chemotherapy. Unfortunately, the response to these drugs lasts a limited time due to the development of acquired resistance. One of the proteins responsible for this process is epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). In this review, we summarize the role of EGFR signaling in the multidrug resistance of melanomas and discuss possible applications of EGFR inhibitors to overcome the development of drug resistance in melanoma cells during therapy.
Source:
Joanna Pastwińska, Kaja Karaś, Iwona Karwaciak, Marcin Ratajewski,
Targeting EGFR in melanoma – The sea of possibilities to overcome drug resistance,
Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Reviews on Cancer,
Volume 1877, Issue 4, 2022, 188754, ISSN 0304-419X,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbcan.2022.188754.