Table 1 Major regulators of hepcidin in different cancers

Type of cancer	Cancer tissue expression of hepcidin regulators	Serum levels of hepcidin regulators in cancer	Factors that regulate hepcidin expression in cancer	Local tumor hepcidin expression	Systemic (liver) hepcidin expression	References
Breast cancer	BMP7 ↑, BMP6 ↓, MT2 ↓	IL-6 ↑	BMP6^a, IL-6^a	↑	↑	^{31, 32, 34, 36, 37, 59}
Lung cancer	BMP2 ↑, BMP7 ↑	BMP2 ↑	BMP2^a	↑	↑	^{25, 27, 28, 30}
Prostate cancer	BMP4/6/7 ↑, IL-6 ↑	IL-6 ↑	BMP4/7^b, IL-6^b, IL-6^a	↑	↑	^{19, 20, 21, 60}
Multiple myeloma	?	BMP2 ↑, IL-6 ↑	BMP2^a, IL-6^a	↓	↑	^{38, 40}
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	BMP6 ↑	IL-6 ↑	IL-6^a	↑	↑	^{41, 43}
Liver carcinoma	BMP6 ↓, HJV ↓, IL-6 ↑	IL-6 ↑	BMP6^c, HJV^c	↓	↓	^{83, 84, 85, 86}
Acute leukemia	IL-6 ↑	IL-6 ↑	IL-6^a	?	↑	^{65, 67}

Abbreviations: BMP, bone morphogenetic protein; HJV, hemojuvelin, IL-6, interleukin-6; MT2, matriptase 2.
^aRegulators of liver hepcidin expression.
^bRegulators of local hepcidin expression.
^cBMP6 and HJV are major regulators of liver hepcidin expression, but studies have yet to directly prove that their downregulation in hepatocellular carcinoma is the reason behind low levels of hepcidin observed in this cancer.

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