ArticleInternational journal of cancer2014
Human endogenous retrovirus type K antibodies and mRNA as serum biomarkers of early-stage breast cancer.
Article in International journal of cancer, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 81 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
81 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 117 citations in OpenAlex.
- A Systematic Review of Expression and Immunogenicity of Human Endogenous Retroviral Proteins in Cancer and Discussion of Therapeutic Approaches.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Pooled it
- Close to the Bedside: A Systematic Review of Endogenous Retroviruses and Their Impact in Oncology.The Journal of surgical research · 2019Pooled it
- Retroviruses and Cancer: Coevolution and Genetic Exchanges Between the Viral and the Host Genomes.Biology · 2026Article
- An expression signature of 19 human endogenous retroviruses identifies immunogenic luminal breast cancers likely to respond to immunotherapy.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- Oncogenic role of ERV with therapeutic potential.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Type I interferons increase expression of endogenous retrovirus K102 and envelope protein in myeloid cells from patients with autoimmune disease.Mobile DNA · 2025Article
- Human endogenous retrovirus K (HERV-K) envelope structures in pre- and postfusion by cryo-EM.Science advances · 2025Article
- Review
- Exploring transposable elements: new horizons in cancer diagnostics and therapeutics.Mobile DNA · 2025Review
- The Role of Human Endogenous Retroviruses in the Initiation and Progression of Melanoma.Biomedicines · 2025Review
- Combination Therapy Approaches to Enhance the Efficacy of ERV-Targeting Vaccines in Cancer.Cancer immunology research · 2025Review
- Identification and clinical implications of endogenous retrovirus elements suppressed by SETDB1 in hepatocellular carcinoma.JHEP reports : innovation in hepatology · 2025Article
- Expression profiles of TNF-Alpha and HERV-K Env proteins in multiple types of colon and lung disease.Genes & genomics · 2025Article
- Exploring viral mimicry combined with epigenetics and tumor immunity: new perspectives in cancer therapy.International journal of biological sciences · 2025Review
- Article
- Identification of modules and key genes associated with breast cancer subtypes through network analysis.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Endogenous Retroviruses Unveiled: A Comprehensive Review of Inflammatory Signaling/Senescence-Related Pathways and Therapeutic Strategies.Aging and disease · 2024Review
- Breast cancer immunopeptidomes contain numerous shared tumor antigens.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2024Article
- Prospects for breast cancer immunotherapy using microRNAs and transposable elements as objects.Exploration of targeted anti-tumor therapy · 2024Review
- Mechanistic regulation of HERV activation in tumors and implications for translational research in oncology.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2024Review
21 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
A simple and accurate test to detect early-stage breast cancer has not been developed. Previous studies indicate that the level of human endogenous retrovirus type K (group HERV-K(HML-2)) transcription may be increased in human breast tumors. We hypothesized that HERV-K(HML-2) reactivation can serve as a biomarker for early detection of breast cancer. Serum samples were collected from women without cancer (controls) and patients with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and invasive breast cancer. ELISA assays were used to detect serum anti-HERV-K(HML-2) antibody titers. RNA was extracted from sera and analyzed by real-time RT-PCR to quantitate the level of HERV-K(HML-2) mRNA. We measured significantly higher serum mRNA and serum antibody titers against HERV-K(HML-2) proteins in women with DCIS and stage I disease than in women without cancer. At optimized cutoffs for the antibody titers, the assay produced an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.89 (95% confidence interval 0.77-1.00) for DCIS and of 0.95 (95% confidence interval 0.89-1.00) for invasive breast cancer. These AUCs are comparable to those observed for mammograms. We also found that serum HERV-K(HML-2) mRNA tended to be higher in breast cancer patients with a primary tumor who later on developed the metastatic disease than in patients who did not develop cancer metastasis. Our results show that HERV-K(HML-2) antibodies and mRNA are already elevated in the blood at an early stage of breast cancer, and further increase in patients who are at risk of developing a metastatic disease.
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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.