Abstract
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common gastrointestinal cancers, with extremely high rates of morbidity and mortality. The main cause of death in CRC is distant metastasis; it affects patient prognosis and survival and is one of the key challenges in the treatment of CRC. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a group of non-coding RNA molecules with more than 200 nucleotides. Abnormal lncRNA expression is closely related to the occurrence and progression of several diseases, including cancer. Recent studies have shown that numerous lncRNAs play pivotal roles in the CRC metastasis, and reversing the expression of these lncRNAs through artificial means can reduce the malignant phenotype of metastatic CRC to some extent. This review summarizes the major mechanisms of lncRNAs in CRC metastasis and proposes lncRNAs as potential therapeutic targets for CRC and molecular markers for early diagnosis.
Highlights
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is currently the third most common malignant tumor worldwide
The CRC metastasis is induced by a variety of factors in vivo and in vitro
LncRNAs act as competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) to regulate the expression of downstream target genes or components of CRC metastasis-associated signaling pathways to impact CRC metastasis
Summary
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is currently the third most common malignant tumor worldwide. The occurrence and development of CRC is a complex process that involves exogenous and endogenous factors, such as Signaling molecules, homeostasis, microenvironment, diet, and lifestyle, which play an important role in the CRC pathogenesis [3, 4]. With the rapid progress in clinical treatment, the 5-year survival rates of patients with CRC has improved significantly. The treatment outcomes in patients with metastatic CRC are still not ideal, and the 5-year survival rate in such patients is only ~12% [6,7,8]. Metastasis of CRC is an important factor leading to the CRC recurrence and death.
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