Molecular signaling in oral cancer invasion and metastasis

Abstract

Head and neck cancer is among the ten most common and lethal tumors worldwide. Over 90 % of head and neck cancers are squamous cell carcinomas, which have a 40 % 5-year mortality and 25 % recurrence rate despite rigorous utilization of several therapeutic modalities. Treatment costs exceed $3.1 billion in America alone. Thus, improvement of conventional therapy is urgently needed to reduce mortality and morbidity of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). HNSCC represents a devastating type of malignancy with a high incidence of local invasion, cervical lymph node metastasis, tumor recurrence, and drug resistance leading to patient disfigurement and death. Understanding the molecular mechanisms associated with aberrant growth, invasion, and metastasis to identify an effective therapeutic target is one of the most demanding goals in head and neck cancer biology. The hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) and MET receptor signaling axis have been studied extensively over the past two decades, revealing their important role in mediating tumor growth, survival, chemoresistance, and invasive growth and metastasis. In this chapter, we will review HGF/SF-MET signaling in malignant HNSCC progression and discuss therapeutic options this signaling pathway may present for the treatment of HNSCC.