Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy. In the majority of cases the disease is curable by means of surgery and, when appropriate, by radioiodine treatment. However, some thyroid tumors became radioiodine-refractory (RAI-R) or they are RAI-R from the beginning because of the lack of differentiation or because they originate from parafollicular C cells (medullary thyroid cancer). Until 2011 no effective therapeutic options were available for these tumors. Moreover anaplastic thyroid cancer that is by definition RAI-R is, despite the multidisciplinary approach which includes surgery, external beam radiotherapy and chemotherapy, almost invariably lethal. Currently, novel therapeutic agents targeting the critical oncogenes (e.g. BRAFV600E and RET) and pathways (e.g. MAPK and PI3K/AKT-mTOR) involved in thyroid cancer pathogenesis and tumor progression have been developed. These drugs known as tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) bind to membrane receptors and determine a growth arrest by blocking tumoral cell proliferation. This review offers an overview of the state of the art on the use of targeted therapies in any type of advanced, progressive and RAI-R thyroid tumors.

Targeted therapies for thyroid cancer.

VIOLA, DAVID;ELISEI, ROSSELLA
2013-01-01

Abstract

Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy. In the majority of cases the disease is curable by means of surgery and, when appropriate, by radioiodine treatment. However, some thyroid tumors became radioiodine-refractory (RAI-R) or they are RAI-R from the beginning because of the lack of differentiation or because they originate from parafollicular C cells (medullary thyroid cancer). Until 2011 no effective therapeutic options were available for these tumors. Moreover anaplastic thyroid cancer that is by definition RAI-R is, despite the multidisciplinary approach which includes surgery, external beam radiotherapy and chemotherapy, almost invariably lethal. Currently, novel therapeutic agents targeting the critical oncogenes (e.g. BRAFV600E and RET) and pathways (e.g. MAPK and PI3K/AKT-mTOR) involved in thyroid cancer pathogenesis and tumor progression have been developed. These drugs known as tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) bind to membrane receptors and determine a growth arrest by blocking tumoral cell proliferation. This review offers an overview of the state of the art on the use of targeted therapies in any type of advanced, progressive and RAI-R thyroid tumors.
2013
Viola, David; Elisei, Rossella
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11568/841080
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