Resumen
Why do most drugs have limited effects in difficult-to-treat cancers such as mesothelioma? One explanation commonly given in response is that not enough drug can get into the tumor to generate an anti-tumor effect. Fibrosis is a common element of mesothelioma that causes the area around the cancer to stiffen. By itself, fibrosis makes breathing difficult and causes a poor quality of life, but it also acts as a barrier stopping drugs from getting into the tumor, and limits the immune system?s ability to detect and access the tumor to kill it. In this review, we discuss how a family of proteins called lysyl oxidases is associated with fibrosis in many disease settings, including solid tumors and mesothelioma, the current status of efforts to therapeutically target these proteins and how targeting this family may have therapeutic applicability in the treatment and management of mesothelioma.