Background: There exist limited therapeutic opportunities for the treatment of endometrial cancer (EC). Itraconazole, a common anti-fungal agent and a potent inhibitor of the Hedgehog pathway, has been shown to be clinically effective for various types of cancers, but its clinical efficacy for EC is unknown. Herein, we evaluated the efficacy of itraconazole in treating EC.
Materials and methods: We performed immunohistochemistry on EC tumour samples including serous endometrial intraepithelial carcinoma (SEIC). We further evaluated the in vitro efficacy of itraconazole for inhibiting proliferation and migration of EC cell lines.
Results: Sonic Hedgehog and glioma-associated oncogene homolog 1 (GLI1) were expressed in SEIC and endometrioid adenocarcinoma. We found that itraconazole significantly inhibited tumour cell growth in both dose-dependent and time-dependent manners and inhibited migration of HEC-1A cells.
Conclusion: Hedgehog signaling plays a role in carcinogenesis and malignant progression in EC. Itraconazole at a physiological dose may suppress progression of EC.
Keywords: Itraconazole; endometrial cancer; hedgehog.
Copyright© 2016 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.