Epigenetic Biomarkers for Early Esophageal Cancer Detection in North East India

Esophageal cancer mortality in North East India is strongly associated with the predominant diagnosis of late stage lesions that hampers effective therapy. Molecular biomarkers for early detection of esophageal cancer are an area of utmost concern in order to control the high incidence and mortality due to esophageal cancer in this region. To date there are no molecular biomarkers that have been used for widespread clinical practice. The emergence of epigenetic biomarkers like methylation markers have ushered in a new hope among the cancer researchers providing new insights in biomarker development for risk assessment, early detection and therapeutic stratification. DNA methylation has rapidly emerged as potential biomarkers in body fluids showing promise to assist the clinical management of esophageal cancer. This review provides an overview of DNA methylation, one of the most common epigenetic events, which profoundly contributes to esophageal cancer initiation and progression. Further it highlights the frequently methylated tumor suppressor and DNA repair genes in esophageal cancer. These frequently methylated genes can be used as biomarkers for early detection of esophageal cancer in North East India after proper validation and verification of these biomarkers in the North Eastern population.