Genomic risks for developing CIPN

Introduction: Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neuropathy (CIPN) may occur as a dose-limiting toxicity during chemotherapy with taxanes, and platinum compounds. CIPN may regress after treatment completion, but if it persists it is likely to have a negative impact on quality of life (QoL). So far, the most promising preventive measure is to equip patients with frozen gloves and socks during treatment, but no drugs have been shown to be effective in the prevention of CIPN. Therefore, research efforts have been directed to focus on factors that may predict the occurrence of CIPN prior to treatment. Objectives: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) are the most common type of genetic variation among people and can be identified by a diverse range of SNP genotyping methods. Methods: A review will be presented of possible associations between SNPs and the risk of CIPN induced by taxanes and platinum compounds. Results: Focus will be on SNPs in drug transporters, detoxification enzymes, genes involved in DNA repair mechanisms, and others. Conclusions: The literature does not give a clear picture of the predictive value of determining SNPs prior to treatment. As the number of long-term cancer survivors increases, a new focus on long-term effects of chemotherapy-induced side effects has emerged. Hopefully in the future, the knowledge gained from application of translational genomics to CIPN will improve the quality of life of cancer survivors.