Role and Clinical Utility of Cancer/Testis Antigens in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract

Cancer/testis (CT) antigens exhibit selective expression predominantly in immunoprivileged tissues in non-pathological contexts but are aberrantly expressed in diverse cancers. Due to their expression pattern, they have historically been attractive targets for immunotherapies. A growing number of studies implicate CT antigens in almost all hallmarks of cancer, suggesting that they may act as cancer drivers. CT antigens are expressed in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. However, their role in the pathogenesis of these cancers remains poorly studied. Given that CT antigens hold intriguing potential as therapeutic targets and as biomarkers for prognosis and that they can provide novel insights into oncogenic mechanisms, their further study in the context of head and squamous cell carcinoma is warranted.

A panel of cancer testis antigens in pan squamous cell carcinomas: implication for biomarkers and therapeutic targets

“…Although the frequency of expression of the same CTA varied in different cancer types, MAGE-A and PRAME were more commonly expressed in these three cancer types, in contrast to KK-LC-1 and NY-ESO-1, which were less frequently expressed. In addition to KK-LC-1, six other CTAs have been studied in the literature for their expression in HNSC [22]. The present study showed that KK-LC-1 was expressed at a low rate of 3% in HNSC.…”

The Price of Human Evolution: Cancer-Testis Antigens, the Decline in Male Fertility and the Increase in Cancer

“…CTA genes, including MAGEs, have been recently excellently reviewed [6,7,70]. Therefore, we only briefly indicate some functions of selected CTA genes which provide key points for our further analysis of GG STRING PPI networks.…”

“…It is enriched with the MAGE group and related reproduction processes. In particular, all these genes are also potential oncogenes [5][6][7]. The densely intertwined CTA-MAGE core of the network (predominantly from the long arm Xq27-28, (see details in Figure 4)) drives spermatogenesis from the proliferation of spermatogonial cells, including the FATE1 (Xq28) gene.…”

“…It indicates the crucial role of CTA genes in the polyploidy-related metastases of this cancer type. Although HNSC has a good prognosis for patient survival at the initial stages, recurrent or metastatic HNSC is largely incurable [6].…”

“…Are both tendencies causally linked? Cancer-testis-associated (CTA) protein-coding genes (expressed nearly selectively in the normal testis), which originated with the development of mammals and expanded in placentals and hominids, turned out to be oncogenic drivers, responsible for the poor prognosis in cancer patients of many solid tumour types [5][6][7]. In this review, we attempt to analyse this fatal link's evolutionary root and contemporary drive.…”