Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Driven Rare Gynecologic Cancers and Evolving Therapeutic Targets
The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade is a critical pathway involved in cancer cell survival as well as resistance to drug therapy. Phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 (ERK1) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 2 (ERK2), the final effectors of the MAPK pathway, results in activation of multiple substrates that are responsible for cellular proliferation, differentiation, survival, and migration. This review will focus on our current understanding of 2 types of rare gynecologic cancers that frequently harbor MAPK alterations, low-grade serous ovarian cancer and mesonephric/mesonephric-like gynecologic neoplasms, and how this understanding may change our future treatment of these diseases.