Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a malignancy with remarkable ethnic and geographic distribution. Initially, point mutations and chromosomal deletions were considered to be the major events involved in the inactivation of tumor-suppressor genes in NPC. The discovery that many tumor-suppressor genes can also be inactivated by hypermethylation of the CpG islands in their promoter region clearly indicates that epigenetic events also play an important role as alternative mechanisms in NPC carcinogenesis.
In this chapter, we update current information on methylated genes associated with the development and progression of NPC. Promoter hypermethylation of critical genes could be potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for NPC.
Several genes have been investigated for methylation in the promoter region in NPC. These methylated genes are involved in critical pathways, such as DNA repair, cell cycle regulation, and invasion/metastasis.
The role of hypermethylated genes in the deregulation of critical pathways in NPC is now well known. Besides their role on the pathogenesis of NPC, results from many investigations have provided additional information on the potential role of hypermethylated genes as predictive biomarkers in the development and progression of NPC.