The cancer epigenome: Concepts, challenges, and therapeutic opportunities

Mark A Dawson

Journal article

The cancer epigenome: Concepts, challenges, and therapeutic opportunities

Mark A Dawson

SCIENCE | AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE | Published : 2017

DOI: 10.1126/science.aam7304

Abstract

Cancer biology is profoundly influenced by changes in the epigenome. Because the dynamic plasticity of the epigenome lends itself well to therapeutic manipulation, the past few years have witnessed an unprecedented investment in the development, characterization, and translation of targeted epigenetic therapies. In this review, I provide a broad context for recent developments that offer a greater understanding of how epigenetic regulators facilitate the initiation, maintenance, and evolution of cancer. I discuss newly developed epigenetic therapies and the cellular and molecular mechanisms that may govern sensitivity and resistance to these agents. I also review the rationale for future com..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Mark Dawson Author

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Funding Acknowledgements

The scope and space limitations of this review have unfortunately meant that I have not been able to separately cite many of the original publications that have contributed substantially to the literature. I sincerely apologize to the authors of these publications. I thank S.-J. Dawson for critical appraisal of the manuscript and all of the members of the Dawson laboratory for helpful discussions. M.A.D. is the senior fellow for Leukaemia Foundation Australia. The National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, Cancer Council Victoria, and the Snowdome Foundation support research in the Dawson laboratory. M.A.D. is on the scientific advisory board of Cancer Therapeutics CRC (CTx), a company developing new cancer drugs, and is a paid consultant for Celgene and Pfizer.