ReviewOncogene2002
DNA methylation in cancer: too much, but also too little.
Review in Oncogene, 2002. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 643 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
643 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 1,545 citations in OpenAlex.
- OPCML Methylation and the Risk of Ovarian Cancer: A Meta and Bioinformatics Analysis.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2021Pooled it
- Prediagnostic White Blood Cell DNA Methylation and Risk of Breast Cancer in the Prostate Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial (PLCO) Cohort.Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology · 2021Trial
- Article
- Whole-Genome Bisulfite Sequencing Identifies Blood-Based DNA Methylation Biomarker for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.Molecular carcinogenesis · 2026Article
- Epigenetic Deregulation of Transposable Elements Links Developmental Processes and Tumorigenesis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Acquisition and extinction of drug-context memories are linked to distinct epigenetic and transcriptional mechanisms in the mouse dentate gyrus.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Unlocking the Epigenetic Landscape of Colorectal Cancer: A Step Toward Epigenetics to Precision.Sub-cellular biochemistry · 2026Review
- Migrasomes: A Novel Target for Cancer Treatment.Current cancer drug targets · 2026Review
- Review
- Decitabine-mediated DNA methylation dynamics at pericentromeric satellite 2 repeats.BMC cancer · 2025Article
- Unveiling the significance of ADAM12 through pan-cancer analysis and experimental verification in gastric cancer.Discover oncology · 2025Article
- Pipeline Olympics: continuable benchmarking of computational workflows for DNA methylation sequencing data against an experimental gold standard.Nucleic acids research · 2025Article
- Single-cell multi-omic detection of DNA methylation and histone modifications reconstructs the dynamics of epigenomic maintenance.Nature methods · 2025Article
- Systematic identification of regions where DNA methylation is correlated with transcription refines regulatory logic in normal and tumour tissues.Nucleic acids research · 2025Article
- Computational analysis of DNA methylation from long-read sequencing.Nature reviews. Genetics · 2025Review
- The mTORC2 subunit RICTOR drives breast cancer progression by promoting ganglioside biosynthesis through transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms.PLoS biology · 2025Article
- Global Hypomethylation as Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) Biomarker in Esophageal and Esophagogastric Junction Adenocarcinoma.Cancers · 2025Article
- Review
- DNA 5mC methylation inhibits the formation of G-quadruplex structures in the genome.Genome biology · 2025Article
- Tumors and their microenvironments: Learning from pediatric brain pathologies.Biochimica et biophysica acta. Reviews on cancer · 2025Review
583 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Cancer-associated DNA hypomethylation is as prevalent as cancer-linked hypermethylation, but these two types of epigenetic abnormalities usually seem to affect different DNA sequences. Much more of the genome is generally subject to undermethylation rather than overmethylation. Genomic hypermethylation in cancer has been observed most often in CpG islands in gene regions. In contrast, very frequent hypomethylation is seen in both highly and moderately repeated DNA sequences in cancer, including heterochromatic DNA repeats, dispersed retrotransposons, and endogenous retroviral elements. Also, unique sequences, including transcription control sequences, are often subject to cancer-associated undermethylation. The high frequency of cancer-linked DNA hypomethylation, the nature of the affected sequences, and the absence of associations with DNA hypermethylation are consistent with an independent role for DNA undermethylation in cancer formation or tumor progression. Increased karyotypic instability and activation of tumor-promoting genes by cis or trans effects, that might include altered heterochromatin-euchromatin interactions, may be important consequences of DNA hypomethylation which favor oncogenesis. The relationship of DNA hypomethylation to tumorigenesis is important to be considered in the light of cancer therapies involving decreasing DNA methylation. Inducing DNA hypomethylation may have short-term anticancer effects, but might also help speed tumor progression from cancer cells surviving the DNA demethylation chemotherapy.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.