Heat shock proteins in main pediatric malignancies. A clinical overview

Heat shock proteins belong to a group of molecular chaperones responsible for the regulation of many intracellular processes. HSPs play a pivotal role in the survival of cells under stressful conditions. Over-expression of these proteins have been found in both healthy and a great number of cancer cells. HSPs may be involved in numerous carcinogenic and chemoresistant processes. Due to that fact, they may be referred to as diagnostic biomarkers of oncogenesis and potential targets for anticancer drugs. Thus, we decided to review the involvement of major HSPs in the most malignant childhood cancers.