Sarrazin Stéphane, Maurage Claude-Alain, Delmas Dominique, Lassalle Philippe and Delehedde Maryse
Endocan also called endothelial cell-specific-molecule-1 is a product of endothelial cells, highly regulated by vascular endothelial growth factor and expressed during the switch between dormant to fast-growing angiogenic tumors. No other molecule is currently known to be a read out of endothelial activation and dysfunction in tumor progression. We here reviewed the present knowledge about endocan that present clinical value as a tissue- and blood- based prognostic and potentially as a companion biomarker in cancer. By immunohistochemistry endocan was shown to be overexpressed into endothelial cells of small and large vessels in lung, kidney and brain tumors. High endocan serum levels were shown to be significantly correlated with the presence of metastasis and with limited survival in kidney and lung cancers. Moreover, endocan release by endothelial cells was in vitro modulated by addition of anti-angiogenic compounds. At a time where biomarkers are hugely needed to improve anti-angiogenic targeted treatments, endocan could be a pertinent biomarker to select patients and/or to clinically monitor the efficacy of cancer drugs. Through its awaited functional applications, endocan appears today as a promising biomarker to access to personalized medicine and to optimize therapy cost / benefit ratio.
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