Godefa Tesfay M, Derks Sarah, Thijssen Victor L J L
Department of Medical Oncology, Amsterdam UMC Location Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Cancer Center Amsterdam, Cancer Biology & Immunology, De Boelelaan 1118, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Cancers (Basel). 2022 Nov 24;14(23):5790. doi: 10.3390/cancers14235790.
Esophageal cancer is a disease with poor overall survival. Despite advancements in therapeutic options, the treatment outcome of esophageal cancer patients remains dismal with an overall 5-year survival rate of approximately 20 percent. To improve treatment efficacy and patient survival, efforts are being made to identify the factors that underlie disease progression and that contribute to poor therapeutic responses. It has become clear that some of these factors reside in the tumor micro-environment. In particular, the tumor vasculature and the tumor immune micro-environment have been implicated in esophageal cancer progression and treatment response. Interestingly, galectins represent a family of glycan-binding proteins that has been linked to both tumor angiogenesis and tumor immunosuppression. Indeed, in several cancer types, galectins have been identified as diagnostic and/or prognostic markers. However, the role of galectins in esophageal cancer is still poorly understood. Here, we summarize the current literature with regard to the expression and potential functions of galectins in esophageal cancer. In addition, we highlight the gaps in the current knowledge and we propose directions for future research in order to reveal whether galectins contribute to esophageal cancer progression and provide opportunities to improve the treatment and survival of esophageal cancer patients.
食管癌是一种总体生存率较低的疾病。尽管治疗方案有所进步，但食管癌患者的治疗结果仍然不容乐观，总体5年生存率约为20%。为了提高治疗效果和患者生存率，人们正在努力确定疾病进展的潜在因素以及导致治疗反应不佳的因素。很明显，其中一些因素存在于肿瘤微环境中。特别是，肿瘤血管系统和肿瘤免疫微环境与食管癌的进展和治疗反应有关。有趣的是，半乳糖凝集素是一类糖结合蛋白家族，与肿瘤血管生成和肿瘤免疫抑制都有关联。事实上，在几种癌症类型中，半乳糖凝集素已被确定为诊断和/或预后标志物。然而，半乳糖凝集素在食管癌中的作用仍知之甚少。在此，我们总结了目前关于半乳糖凝集素在食管癌中的表达及潜在功能的文献。此外，我们强调了当前知识中的空白，并提出了未来研究的方向，以揭示半乳糖凝集素是否促进食管癌进展，并为改善食管癌患者的治疗和生存提供机会。
