Reversing Hormone Therapy Resistance: A Novel Era of EpigeneticTherapy in Breast and Prostate Cancers

In breast and prostate cancers, hormones mediate the initiation and progression of the disease. These cancers depend on specific steroid hormone receptors, such as estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and androgen receptor (AR). Hormone therapy has become a standard method of treatment for receptor-positive breast and prostate cancers. Despite the fact that most patients initially respond to hormone therapy, with the suppression of tumour growth, resistance develops in a subset of early-stage patients and almost all patients in advanced stages. Furthermore, patients with hormone receptor-positive, ligand-dependent; receptor-positive, ligand-independent; or receptor-negative, ligand-independent are primarily resistant to hormone therapies. Thus, it is essential to understand the mechanism behind the resistance and develop ways to switch from hormone resistance to susceptibility.