Cancer Metabolism: Molecular Targeting and Implications for Therapy

“Metabolic reprogramming” is one of the hallmarks of cancer, and is exemplified by distinctive biochemical alterations which include enhanced glucose uptake, aerobic glycolysis and glutamine-metabolism. Clinically, the prominent feature of altered metabolism, (i.e.) rapid glucose utilization, has already been exploited to diagnose majority of solid malignancies using PET/CT imaging. In the light of recent research it has become evident that cancer-specific metabolic shift complements pro-survival and anti-apoptotic events during unfavorable conditions such as nutrient-deprivation and therapeutic challenges. Furthermore, metabolic alteration has also been known to facilitate or impact several cancer-related processes underscoring its functional significance. Recent reports also indicate the existence of a link between altered metabolism and oncogenic-driver mutations/ signaling pathways. Despite the recognition of cancer metabolism as a potential therapeutic target successful clinical translation of potential therapeutic remains elusive. Recent advances in understanding the molecular intricacies of tumor metabolism has greatly improved the prospects of developing efficacious therapeutic strategies.

This Research Topic in Frontiers in Oncology will focus on the progress in the current knowledge of tumor metabolism. The overall goal of this research topic is to critically evaluate potential challenges in targeting energy metabolism of cancer and the opportunity to develop potential strategies to circumvent existing therapeutic limitations or impediments. The topic will emphasize in molecular dissection of the link between cancer’s altered metabolism and other phenotypic signatures of cancer. For example the correlation between metabolic reprogramming and (a) the maintenance of tumor initiating cells (TICs) or cancer stem cells (CSCs), (b) metastasis, (c) resistance to therapy, (d) immune evasion and so on. Thus, this research topic will cover recent developments in the role and regulation of principal energy producing pathways including (but not limited to) tumor glycolysis, pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) and the mitochondrial energy metabolism. Contributions in the form of review articles, commentaries/perspectives and original research articles are welcome to develop a potent therapeutic and/or efficacious translatable strategy to target cancer metabolism to achieve better therapeutic outcome.