Despite recent advances that have been made in the therapeutic landscape of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), effective management of bone metastases remains a key goal not yet reached.
The receptor tyrosine kinase MET and the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) seem to play an important role in prostate cancer progression and pathological bone turnover, representing potential targets for improving clinical outcomes in mCRPC. Studies evaluating agents that target one or both these pathways have demonstrated modest activity but no improvement in overall survival. Nevertheless, this therapeutic strategy seems to still be a promising and engaging area of prostate cancer research and the interest in better understanding the MET/VEGFR axis and the mechanism of action of these inhibitors is growing. This review describes the rationale for targeting MET and VEGFR pathway in mCRPC and provides the clinical data available to date and an update on ongoing trials.
Targeted oncology. 2016 Feb 05 [Epub ahead of print]
Alessandra Modena, Francesco Massari, Chiara Ciccarese, Matteo Brunelli, Matteo Santoni, Rodolfo Montironi, Guido Martignoni, Giampaolo Tortora
Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata (AOUI), University of Verona, Piazzale L. A. Scuro 10, 37134, Verona, Italy. , Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata (AOUI), University of Verona, Piazzale L. A. Scuro 10, 37134, Verona, Italy. Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata (AOUI), University of Verona, Piazzale L. A. Scuro 10, 37134, Verona, Italy. , Department of Pathology and Diagnostic, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata (AOUI), University of Verona, Verona, Italy. , Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria (AOU) Ospedali Riuniti, Polytechnic University of the Marche Region, Ancona, Italy. , Section of Pathological Anatomy, School of Medicine, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria (AOU) Ospedali Riuniti, Polytechnic University of the Marche Region, Ancona, Italy. , Department of Pathology and Diagnostic, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata (AOUI), University of Verona, Verona, Italy. , Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata (AOUI), University of Verona, Piazzale L. A. Scuro 10, 37134, Verona, Italy.