The Current State of Head and Neck Cancer Gene Therapy

Abstract

The incidence of head and neck cancer continues to increase worldwide, with tobacco exposure and human papillomavirus type 16 infections being the major etiological factors. Current therapeutic options are ineffective in approximately half of the individuals afflicted with this malignancy. Developments in the identification of molecules that sustain head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) growth and survival have made molecular targeting by gene therapy approaches a feasible therapeutic strategy. Although gene therapy was originally designed to correct single gene defects, it has now evolved to encompass all forms of therapeutic interventions involving engineered cells and nucleic acids that modify the overall pattern of gene expression within target tissues. Several preclinical studies and clinical trials have tested the efficacy of targeting specific molecules in patients with HNSCC, using genetic therapy approaches. This review discusses promising preclinical and clinical approaches and new directions for HNSCC gene therapy.

A feasibility study on gene therapy of pancreatic carcinoma with Ad-PUMA

“…4 Advanced head and neck cancers are the mostly evaluated indications for cancer gene therapy. [5][6][7] To date, there are at least 12 HNSCC gene therapy clinical protocols that have been registered officially in the clinicaltrials.gov registry. 5 Some of these clinical trials produced remarkable tumor remission, with more data coming.…”

“…[5][6][7] To date, there are at least 12 HNSCC gene therapy clinical protocols that have been registered officially in the clinicaltrials.gov registry. 5 Some of these clinical trials produced remarkable tumor remission, with more data coming. It cells infected with 20 or 100 MOI of Ad-GFP were GFP positive, which indicated that adenovirus vector was able to infect pancreatic cancer cells efficiently, and adenovirus vector-mediated gene expression could be used for studies on cell biology and animal experiment in pancreatic cancer cells.…”

“…Significantly, exogenous expression of PUMA decreased the IC 50 of the pancreatic carcinoma cell to chemotherapeutic agents by 4.9-to 64.1-fold, compared with that was also suggested that gene therapy combining conventional therapies may come up with extra benefits. 5 When it comes to pancreatic cancer, gene therapy also brings hope for the development of new treatment strategies.…”

Folic Acid-Decorated Polyamidoamine Dendrimer Mediates Selective Uptake and High Expression of Genes in Head and Neck Cancer Cells

“…Although advances have been made in conventional therapy including surgery, chemotherapy and radiation, their impact on improvement of 5-year mortality rate of patients with HNSCC is still minimal [2]. Increased understanding of molecular events involved in HNSCC initiation and progression has led to the development of gene therapy as a potential treatment option [3][4][5][6][7][8].…”

Therapeutic Targeting of p53-Mediated Apoptosis Pathway in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinomas: Current Progress and Challenges

“…However, those conventional therapies in particular radiotherapy and chemotherapy, are non-selective and can cause damage to normal tissue. Modification of the approaches have improved cure rate in only approximately half of the patients (Ichwan & Ikeda, 2008;Thomas & Grandis, 2009). Recently, dramatic improvements in our knowledge of the molecular and genetic basis of HNSCC combined with advances in technology have resulted in novel molecular therapies for the disease by targeting of specific molecule in cancer therapy to selectively destroys cancer cells including targeting the function of p53 tumor suppressor.…”