Dear Colleagues,

Most aggressive tumors are characterized by a highly invasive phenotype and are resistant to traditional methods of treatment, namely chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In addition, some tumors lack the expression of potential therapeutic targets. This is a case of pancreatic cancer, glioblastoma, osteosarcoma, melanoma, clear cell renal cell carcinoma, prostate cancer, and advanced ovarian cancer. Unfortunately, these patients have a low survival rate, and most of the available drugs are ineffective. Most aggressive tumors arise from alterations in the DNA sequence of genes, as well as from epigenetic changes. Both changes induce the activation of oncogenes or the inactivation of tumor-suppressor genes, leading to evasion of growth suppressor function, resistance to apoptosis, uncontrolled cell cycle, immune evasion as well as increased invasive and metastatic potential. Clinical and preclinical studies have led to a number of advances in the treatment of oncological diseases, which has led to an increase in patient survival. However, treatment strategies for most aggressive tumors remain largely unchanged, with no significant improvements. For instance, in a new era of targeted therapies, epigenetic therapies are emerging as a potential approach to treating most aggressive tumors, offering these patients new hope. All this is a topic of paramount importance in medicine for the development of effective individual drugs that target a specific type of tumor at the molecular level.

The sub-topics to be covered within the issue should be provided:
Epigenetic modifications, signaling pathways and factors
Most aggressive tumors: pancreatic cancer, glioblastoma, osteosarcoma, melanoma, clear cell renal cell carcinoma, prostate cancer, and advanced ovarian cancer
Search for new target genes for targeted therapy
The role of molecular diagnostic methods in assessing the effectiveness of therapy

Dr. Ozal Beylerli and Dr. Ilgiz Gareev
Guest Editors