Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway as Chemotherapeutic Target in Breast Cancer: An Update on Pros and Cons.

The Wnt/β-catenin pathway, in addition to playing a crucial role in the development of the mammary gland during embryogenesis and during pregnancy, is one of the most commonly altered pathways in breast cancer. Accumulating findings from in vitro and in vivo and clinical studies have been suggestive of this pathway as a potential chemotherapy target. However, approved chemotherapeutic agents targeting this pathway are still missing for the treatment of patients with cancer. None of the clinical trials on the Wnt/β-catenin pathway inhibitors have translated beyond phase I/II studies. Hence, detailed analysis of the alterations in this pathway and the therapeutic agents modulating Wnt/β-catenin signaling components in breast cancer is warranted. The present review explored the latest developments in the association of deregulation in the Wnt/β-catenin signal cascade with the pathogenesis of breast cancer, the progress in identifying the potential chemotherapeutic drugs inhibiting this pathway, and the status of these compounds in clinical trials of breast cancer.