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World J Gastroenterol. Aug 7, 2014; 20(29): 9862-9871
Published online Aug 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i29.9862
Strategies to overcome resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor monoclonal antibody therapy in metastatic colorectal cancer
Woo-Jeong Jeong, Pu-Hyeon Cha, Kang-Yell Choi
Woo-Jeong Jeong, Pu-Hyeon Cha, Kang-Yell Choi, Translational Research Center for Protein Function Control, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749, South Korea
Author contributions: Jeong WJ and Cha PH wrote the manuscript draft and edited the final version of the article; Choi KY revised it critically for important intellectual content and approved the final version.
Correspondence to: Kang-Yell Choi, Professor, Translational Research Center for Protein Function Control, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-Dong, Seodemun-Gu, Seoul 120-749, South Korea. kychoi@yonsei.ac.kr
Telephone: +82-2-21236592  Fax: +82-2-3627265
Received: November 1, 2013
Revised: February 14, 2014
Accepted: April 15, 2014
Published online: August 7, 2014
Core Tip

Core tip: Personalized treatment of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) based on genetic profiling of individual tumors is considered the future direction of cancer therapy. The important discovery that mutation of the K-ras gene is a predictor of resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibodies is only the first of a series of genetic predictors and an increasing number of molecular alterations have since been hypothesized to play a role in resistance to anti-EGFR drugs in CRC, including activating mutations in B-Raf and PIK3CA, and loss of expression of PTEN. A comprehensive molecular characterization of mCRC and a better understanding of the functional interactions within the RTK-activated intracellular pathway will be necessary in order to select the most appropriate therapy for each individual patient.