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Review
. 2023 Feb 21;15(5):1366.
doi: 10.3390/cancers15051366.

Rational Targets of Therapy in Extranodal NK/T-Cell Lymphoma

Ajay Major  1 , Pierluigi Porcu  2 , Bradley M Haverkos  1
Affiliations
Review

Rational Targets of Therapy in Extranodal NK/T-Cell Lymphoma

Ajay Major et al. Cancers (Basel). .

Abstract

Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTL) is an aggressive extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) with poor outcomes, particularly in advanced-stage and relapsed/refractory disease. Emerging research on molecular drivers of ENKTL lymphomagenesis by next-generation and whole genome sequencing has revealed diverse genomic mutations in multiple signaling pathways, with the identification of multiple putative targets for novel therapeutic agents. In this review, we summarize the biological underpinnings of newly-understood therapeutic targets in ENKTL with a focus on translational implications, including epigenetic and histone regulatory aberrations, activation of cell proliferation signaling pathways, suppression of apoptosis and tumor suppressor genes, changes in the tumor microenvironment, and EBV-mediated oncogenesis. In addition, we highlight prognostic and predictive biomarkers which may enable a personalized medicine approach toward ENKTL therapy.

Keywords: biomarkers; extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTL); novel therapies.

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Conflict of interest statement

A.M. declares no conflict of interest. P.P. declares research funding from Viracta Therapeutics and Teva; honoraria from Viracta Therapeutics, Innate Pharma, Daiichi, Kyowa, and Teva; scientific boards for Viracta Therapeutics, Innate Pharma, BeiGene, Kyowa, Morphosysi, ADCT, Loxo, and Ono; and consultancy for DrenBio. B.M.H. declares consultancy for Viracta Therapeutics.

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