The bone morphogenetic protein pathway in colorectal cancer progression

We set out the get a better understanding of the role of Bone Morphogenetic Protein(BMP) signalling in normal intestine and in carcinogenesis. The BMP pathway isknown to be a major player in the development of colorectal cancer (CRC). CRC isone of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in the western world. Althoughsurvival and recurrence of CRC have improved, 5-year survival is low at only 65%(https://seer.cancer.gov – US data). Improving our understanding of the molecularpathways involved in CRC will potentially allow earlier detection, better predictionand personalized therapy. To briefly summarise the research we have done, we startedby investigating the function of BMP in the normal intestine. We then went on tostudy the role of BMP signalling in carcinogenesis, mainly the role of non canonicalBMP signalling in the development of metastasis. We ended with a focus on patientsby explaining how we can improve estimation of prognosis using expression levelsof several BMP components and how targeting the BMP pathway can be used forpersonalized treatment of patients.