Recent clinical trials and optical control as a potential strategy to develop microtubule-targeting drugs in colorectal cancer management

Abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) has remained the second and the third leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide and in the United States, respectively. Although significant improvement in overall survival has been achieved, death in adult populations under the age of 55 appears to have increased in the past decades. Although new classes of therapeutic strategies such as immunotherapy have emerged, their application is very limited in CRC so far. Microtubule (MT) inhibitors such as taxanes, are not generally successful in CRC. There may be some way to make MT inhibitors work effectively in CRC. One potential advantage that we can take to treat CRC may be the combination of optical techniques coupled to an endoscope or other fiber optics-based devices. A combination of optical devices and photo-activatable drugs may allow us to locally target advanced CRC cells with highly potent MT-targeting drugs. In this Editorial review, we would like to discuss the potential of optogenetic approaches in CRC management.

Keywords: Colorectal cancer; Chemotherapy; Microtubule; Combretastatin; Photopharmacology

Core Tip: This review article proposes a potentially new approach to utilize photo-switchable microtubule (MT)-targeting drugs in colorectal cancer (CRC). First, we will start the introduction of CRC and current therapy as well as some updates in 2023. Then, we list a popular MT-targeting drug family, taxanes in CRC. As many readers may be aware, taxanes are not really effective in CRC for some reason. Here, we would like to shed light on optically controllable MT-targeting drugs as potential new drug candidates in CRC management.