Osteosarcoma : searching for new treatment options

Osteosarcoma is the most frequent malignant bone tumor affecting mainly adolescents and people older than 50years old. Current treatment involves chemotherapy and surgical removal. Despite efforts to find a cure, there is 70% 5year survival rate. For patients that present metastasis at the moment of diagnosis, the prognosis is worse. Additionally, many do not respond well to chemotherapy. The aim of this research was to find new treatment options for patients with osteosarcoma. I searched for inhibitors that could sensitize osteosarcoma cells to chemotherapy. In this thesis, it is shown that targeting cell cycle regulators, proteins involved in apoptosis inhibition, and cellular pathways involved in survival, proliferation and migration are promising candidates for further research.