Open AccessGuanylyl cyclase C as a biomarker for immunotherapies for the treatment of gastrointestinal malignancies
Author(s) -
John C. Flíckinger,
Jeff Rappaport,
Joshua R. Barton,
Trevor R. Baybutt,
Amanda M. Pattison,
Adam E. Snook,
Scott A. Waldman
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
biomarkers in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.652
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1752-0371
pISSN - 1752-0363
DOI - 10.2217/bmm-2020-0359
Subject(s) - medicine , gastrointestinal tract , gastrointestinal cancer , context (archaeology) , colorectal cancer , malignancy , esophageal cancer , cancer , pancreas , pancreatic cancer , esophagus , oncology , cancer research , gastroenterology , biology , paleontology
Gastrointestinal cancers encompass a diverse class of tumors arising in the GI tract, including esophagus, stomach, pancreas and colorectum. Collectively, gastrointestinal cancers compose a high fraction of all cancer deaths, highlighting an unmet need for novel and effective therapies. In this context, the transmembrane receptor guanylyl cyclase C (GUCY2C) has emerged as an attractive target for the prevention, detection and treatment of many gastrointestinal tumors. GUCY2C is an intestinally-restricted protein implicated in tumorigenesis that is universally expressed by primary and metastatic colorectal tumors as well as ectopically expressed by esophageal, gastric and pancreatic cancers. This review summarizes the current state of GUCY2C-targeted modalities in the management of gastrointestinal malignancies, with special focus on colorectal cancer, the most incident gastrointestinal malignancy.