Growth hormone receptor blockade in cancer treatment

Cancer remains as the most feared human disease and embodies deep psychological and physical suffering (1). It is one of the unsolved medical problems nowadays and constitutes a heavy burden not only for the individual and his family but also for health systems worldwide (2). In this context, cancer prevention and early diagnosis and treatment is of cardinal importance; hence, identification of cancer risk factors in the genesis of human cancer is an urgent necessity. Among these deleterious influences, obesity and aberrantly increased growth hormone receptor (GHR) signaling have been identified as two of the most relevant factors in the etiology of malignancy (3, 4). Considering the above premises, attempts at effectively and safely treating patients with cancer are within the noblest aims in medicine and science. At present, radical surgery, radio and chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy are the basis for dealing with this widespread issue (5). Nevertheless, and especially in several types of cancer, all efforts are ineffective (6). In consequence, strategies to discover new medicines aimed at safely and effectively treating individuals affected by cancer are needed. Similarly, adjuvant methods aimed at making more effective use of standard therapies are required. Contextually, a new experimental approach to dealing with melanoma, liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, and cholangiocarcinoma, some of the most lethal malignancies in humans, has been developed based on the previous discovery of a GHR antagonist used for acromegaly and its mode of action (7, 8). Development of new drugs for cancer treatment is partially based on observations in humans who have a distinct phenotype that combines obesity -the most epidemiologic risk factor in cancer etiology- along with absent growth hormone receptor (GHR) signaling (4, 9).