Early detection of laryngeal cancer: prominence of miRNA signature as a new tool for clinicians

Early detection of laryngeal cancer, essential in the initial stages of the disease to achieve a high survival rate, is unfortunately hampered by the lack of specific symptoms. In this regard, there is a pressing need to dispose of reliable and non-invasive diagnostic and prognostic markers for a real time monitoring availing of accurate and reproducible methods, in order ensure applicability for early diagnosis and primary and secondary prevention. This review focuses on the recent reports that emphasize the crucial role of miRNAs in regulating laryngeal cancer tumorigenesis. In detail, we have reported the most characterized miRNAs with an established oncogenic or oncosuppressive role in cell biology of laryngeal cancer, also describing, for each of them, the main molecular mechanisms responsible for their specific function. We have also defined the potential of miRNAs as novel diagnostic and prognostic markers in virtue of their differential expression between laryngeal carcinoma tissues and the adjacent normal counterpart. Moreover, their proven stability in systemic circulation and other body fluids, as well as their easy detection and quantization, makes the analysis of miRNA signatures an excellent tool for clinicians as hallmark for cancer classification and diagnosis. Moreover, an eventual similarity between deregulated miRNAs in tumor tissues and in body fluids would allow to provide a considerable advantage for patients’ compliance, replacing invasive tissue biopsies with simple assays on easily obtained blood products.