Members of the signal transducers and activators of transcription (STAT) pathway have recently been demonstrated to have a major role in cancer. Constitutive activation of the STAT family members Stat3 and Stat5, and/or loss of Stat1 signaling, is found in a large group of diverse tumors. STAT proteins can regulate many pathways important in oncogenesis including cell-cycle progression, apoptosis, tumor angiogenesis, and tumor-cell evasion of the immune system. This review highlights STAT signaling pathways, STAT target genes involved in cancer, evidence for STAT activation in human cancers, and therapeutic strategies to target STAT molecules for anticancer therapy.
- Eric B Haura
- James Turkson
- Richard Jove
