Cancer Glycobiology: A Hot Area of Cancer Research

Cancer glycobiology is a rapidly evolving field of cancer research, focusing on the aberrant post-translational glycosylations on lipids and proteins. These anomalies are considered crucial for cancer development and metastasis. The NIH/NCI Alliance of Glycobiologists for Cancer Research is a consortium of ten tumor glycobiology laboratories funded to investigate how cancer-associated glycans (CAG) impact the development and metastasis of cancer.

The primary goal of this effort is to discover CAGs for use as novel biomarkers to detect early-stage cancer or its aggressive behavior, or as novel molecular targets with the potential for a curative approach to cancer therapy. The mission of the Alliance is to study the structure and function of CAGs in cancer development and to provide clinically useful biomarkers for detecting cancer early or the potential of metastasis.

This charge has stimulated extensive collaborations across US and international institutions to accelerate the discovery of glycan-based biomarkers to the forefront of NCI’s efforts to diagnose early-stage cancer and provide curative anti-cancer therapies. The main goals of these research efforts are:

1. To identify and study how cancer-associated glycans functionally impact cancer growth and metastasis
2. To identify cancer-associated glycans that can serve as biomarkers for the detection or progression of cancer
3. To develop cancer-associated glycans as novel therapeutic targets for the treatment and cure of cancer

This volume consists of nine chapters, one from each funded laboratory, that reviews new methods and mechanisms highlighting glycoconjugates and their roles as cancer biomarkers and/or anti-cancer therapeutic targets. The topics covered include:

1. Historical and Novel Glycobiological Biomarkers of Cancer and Disease Progression
2. Novel Glycobiological Mechanisms Driving Cancer Progression
3. Novel Methods for Discovering Glycobiological Biomarkers of Cancer

By exploring these topics, researchers and scientists can gain a deeper understanding of the role of glycobiology in cancer research and its potential applications in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.