Advances and challenges in drug repurposing in precision therapeutics of colorectal cancer

Table 2 Recent advances and drugs in drug repurposing for colorectal cancer treatment

Pathways	Drugs	Purposes
Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway	Pyrotinib	TKI inhibitor to degrade β-catenin
	Risedronate	ADC to target therapeutic sites
EGFR/RAS/MAPK signaling pathway	Aspirin	NSAID to inhibit EGFR activity
	Simvastatin	Lipid-lowering drug to inhibit MAPK activity
PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway	MET	Antidiabetic drug to activate AMPK/NF-κB signaling pathway
Tumor inflammation and immune regulation	Tocilizumab	MRA to block IL-6 signaling
	Aspirin and pembrolizumab	Combinations to modulate tumor microenvironment
Metabolic reprogramming	2-DG	Glycolysis inhibitor to reprogram glucose metabolism
	Metformin	Antidiabetic drug to reduce lactate production
Epigenetic regulation	Vorinostat	HDAC inhibitor to induce histone hyperacetylation
Anti-angiogenesis	Bevacizumab	Monoclonal antibody to target VEGF
	Thalidomide	Treatment of nausea in pregnant women to inhibit VEGF pathway

EGFR: Epidermal growth factor receptor; MAPK: Mitogen-activated protein kinase; PI3K: Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase; AKT: Protein kinase B; mTOR: Mammalian target of rapamycin; MET: Metformin hydrochloride; MRA: Tocilizumab; 2-DG: 2-Deoxy-D-glucose; TKI: Tyrosine kinase inhibitor; ADC: Antibody-drug conjugates; NSAID: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; AMPK: Adenosine 5’-monophosphate-activated protein kinase; NF-κB: Nuclear factor kappa-B; IL: Interleukin; HDAC: Histone deacetylase; VEGF: Vascular endothelial growth factor.