Momelotinib decreased cancer stem cell associated tumor burden and prolonged disease-free remission period in a mouse model of human ovarian cancer

Abstract

Despite a good initial response to front-line chemotherapy, majority of the ovarian cancer patients relapse with consecutive phases of recurrences; and nearly 60% die within 5 years due to the development of a chemoresistant disease. This study investigated whether inhibition of the Janus kinase 2 (JAK2)-signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) pathway by momelotinib is sufficient in suppressing tumor burden and prolonging the disease-free survival period in a mouse model of ovarian cancer. We demonstrate that paclitaxel treatment enhanced JAK2/STAT3 activation which resulted in the enrichment of cancer stem cell (CSC)- like phenotype in the surviving ovarian cancer cells i..