Insulin-like Growth Factor Messenger RNA-binding Protein 3 Expression Helps Prognostication in Patients with Upper Tract Urothelial Carcinoma

IGF2BPs as novel m6A readers: Diverse roles in regulating cancer cell biological functions, hypoxia adaptation, metabolism, and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment

m6A methylation is the most frequent modification of mRNA in eukaryotes and plays a crucial role in cancer progression by regulating biological functions. Insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding proteins (IGF2BP) are newly identified m6A 'readers'. They belong to a family of RNA-binding proteins, which bind to the m6A sites on different RNA sequences and stabilize them to promote cancer progression. In this review, we summarize the mechanisms by which different upstream factors regulate IGF2BP in cancer. The current literature analyzed here reveals that the IGF2BP family proteins promote cancer cell proliferation, survival, and chemoresistance, inhibit apoptosis, and are also associated with cancer glycolysis, angiogenesis, and the immune response in the tumor microenvironment. Therefore, with the discovery of their role as 'readers' of m6A and the characteristic re-expression of IGF2BPs in cancers, it is important to elucidate their mechanism of action in the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. We also describe in detail the regulatory and interaction network of the IGF2BP family in downstream target RNAs and discuss their potential clinical applications as diagnostic and prognostic markers, as well as recent advances in IGF2BP biology and associated therapeutic value.

RNA-Binding Proteins in Bladder Cancer

RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) are key regulators of transcription and translation, with highly dynamic spatio-temporal regulation. They are usually involved in the regulation of RNA splicing, polyadenylation, and mRNA stability and mediate processes such as mRNA localization and translation, thereby affecting the RNA life cycle and causing the production of abnormal protein phenotypes that lead to tumorigenesis and development. Accumulating evidence supports that RBPs play critical roles in vital life processes, such as bladder cancer initiation, progression, metastasis, and drug resistance. Uncovering the regulatory mechanisms of RBPs in bladder cancer is aimed at addressing the occurrence and progression of bladder cancer and finding new therapies for cancer treatment. This article reviews the effects and mechanisms of several RBPs on bladder cancer and summarizes the different types of RBPs involved in the progression of bladder cancer and the potential molecular mechanisms by which they are regulated, with a view to providing information for basic and clinical researchers.

Selection and evaluation of preoperative systemic inflammatory response biomarkers model prior to cytoreductive nephrectomy using a machine-learning approach

INTRODUCTION

This study aimed to determine the prognostic value of a panel of SIR-biomarkers, relative to standard clinicopathological variables, to improve mRCC patient selection for cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN).

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A panel of preoperative SIR-biomarkers, including the albumin-globulin ratio (AGR), De Ritis ratio (DRR), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), was assessed in 613 patients treated with CN for mRCC. Patients were randomly divided into training and testing cohorts (65/35%). A machine learning-based variable selection approach (LASSO regression) was used for the fitting of the most informative, yet parsimonious multivariable models with respect to prognosis of cancer-specific survival (CSS). The discriminatory ability of the model was quantified using the C-index. After validation and calibration of the model, a nomogram was created, and decision curve analysis (DCA) was used to evaluate the clinical net benefit.

RESULTS

SIR-biomarkers were selected by the machine-learning process to be of high discriminatory power during the fitting of the model. Low AGR remained significantly associated with CSS in both training (HR 1.40, 95% CI 1.07-1.82, p = 0.01) and testing (HR 1.78, 95% CI 1.26-2.51, p = 0.01) cohorts. High levels of SII (HR 1.51, 95% CI 1.10-2.08, p = 0.01) and DRR (HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.01-1.96, p = 0.04) were associated with CSS only in the testing cohort. The exclusion of the SIR-biomarkers for the prognosis of CSS did not result in a significant decrease in C-index (- 0.9%) for the training cohort, while the exclusion of SIR-biomarkers led to a reduction in C-index in the testing cohort (- 5.8%). However, SIR-biomarkers only marginally increased the discriminatory ability of the respective model in comparison to the standard model.

CONCLUSION

Despite the high discriminatory ability during the fitting of the model with machine-learning approach, the panel of readily available blood-based SIR-biomarkers failed to add a clinical benefit beyond the standard model.

The biological function of IGF2BPs and their role in tumorigenesis

The insulin-like growth factor-2 mRNA-binding proteins (IGF2BPs) pertain to a highly conservative RNA-binding family that works as a post-transcriptional fine-tuner for target transcripts. Emerging evidence suggests that IGF2BPs regulate RNA processing and metabolism, including stability, translation, and localization, and are involved in various cellular functions and pathophysiologies. In this review, we summarize the roles and molecular mechanisms of IGF2BPs in cancer development and progression. We mainly discuss the functional relevance of IGF2BPs in embryo development, neurogenesis, metabolism, RNA processing, and tumorigenesis. Understanding IGF2BPs role in tumor progression will provide new insight into cancer pathophysiology.

ITPKA1 Promotes Growth, Migration and Invasion of Renal Cell Carcinoma via Activation of mTOR Signaling Pathway

Background

Renal cell cancer (RCC) is one of the most lethal malignancies of the kidney in adults. mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) signaling pathway plays a pivotal role in RCC tumorigenesis and progression and inhibitors targeting the mTOR pathway have been widely used in advanced RCC treatment. Therefore, it is of great significance to explore the potential regulators of the mTOR pathway as RCC therapeutic targets.

Materials and Methods

Bioinformatics analysis was used to screen out the most significant differentially expressed genes in the RCC dataset of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Real-time PCR and Western-blot analysis were utilized to examine the expression of inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate-3-kinase-A (ITPKA) in four RCC cell lines and one human embryonic kidney cell line. Cell counting Kit-8 and colony formation assay were performed to estimate the effect of ITPKA on the proliferation ability of RCC cells. Wound healing and Transwell assays were used to test the effect of ITPKA on RCC cell migration and invasion. Xenograft formation assay was performed in nude mice to investigate the effect of ITPKA in vivo. mTORC1 pathway inhibitor was added to explore the mechanisms by which ITPKA regulates RCC cell growth and progression.

Results

Based on bioinformatics analysis, ITPKA is screened out as one of the most significant differentially expressed genes in RCC. ITPKA is upregulated and positively correlated with RCC malignancy and poorer prognosis. ITPKA promotes RCC growth, migration and invasion in cultured cells, and accelerates tumor growth in nude mice. Mechanistically, ITPKA stimulates the mTORC1 signaling pathway which is a requirement for ITPKA modulation of RCC cell proliferation, migration and invasion.

Conclusion

Our data demonstrate a critical regulatory role of the ITPKA in RCC and suggest that ITPKA/mTORC1 axis may be a promising target for diagnosis and treatment of RCC.

A prospective comparative study of routine versus deferred pelvic drain placement after radical prostatectomy: impact on complications and opioid use

PURPOSE

To evaluate the association of post-RP drain placement with post-operative complications and opioid use at a high-volume institution.

METHODS

A prospective, comparative cohort study of patients undergoing robot-assisted or open RP was conducted. Patients for two surgeons did not routinely receive pelvic drains ("No Drain" arm), while the remainder routinely placed drains ("Drain" arm). Outcomes were evaluated at 30 days including Clavien-Dindo complications and opioid use. Intention-to-treat primary analysis and additional secondary analyses were performed using appropriate statistical tests and logistic regression.

RESULTS

Of 498 total patients, 144 (28.9%) were in the No Drain arm (all robot-assisted) and 354 (71.1%) in the Drain arm. In the No Drain arm, 19 (13.2%) intraoperatively were chosen to receive drains. There was no difference in overall or major (Clavien ≥ 3) complications between groups (p = 0.2 and 0.4, respectively). Drain deferral did not predict complications on multivariable analysis adjusted for age, BMI, comorbidities, clinical risk, surgical approach, operating time, lymphadenectomy, and number of nodes removed [OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.34-1.11, p = 0.10]; nor did it predict symptomatic fluid collection, adjusting for lymphadenectomy and nodes removed [OR 1.14, 95% CI 0.43-3.60, p = 0.8]. Drain deferral did not decrease opioid use (p = 0.5). Per protocol analysis and restriction to robot-assisted cases demonstrated similar results.

CONCLUSION

There was no difference in adverse events, complications, symptomatic collections, or opioid use with deferral of routine drain placement after RP. Experienced surgeons may safely defer drain placement in the majority of robot-assisted RP cases.

Comprehensive analysis of m6A regulators prognostic value in prostate cancer

Background: N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prevalent RNA modification. While the role of m6A in prostate cancer remains unknown. We aim to measure the effects of m6A methylation regulatory genes during the development and progression of prostate cancer.

Methods: We collected transcriptome information and gene-level alteration data from The Cancer Genome Atlas datasets. The log-rank test and Cox regression model were used to examine the prognosis value of m6A methylation regulatory genes of prostate cancer.

Results: We discovered that most of m6A methylation regulators were highly expressed in aggressive prostate cancer. Univariable and multivariable Cox regression results showed that the expression of Insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 3 (IGF2BP3), Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins A2/B1 (HNRNPA2B1) and N6-adenosine-methyltransferase non-catalytic subunit (METTL14) and copy number variant of AlkB Homolog 5 (ALKBH5) were considerably associated with a recurrence-free survival of prostate cancer. Furthermore, a high level of m6A methylation in mRNA promotes the progression of prostate cancer via regulating subcellular protein localization.

Conclusion: Patients with a high level of mRNA methylation resulted from overexpression of reader proteins and methyltransferase complexes had poor survival benefits through influencing protein subcellular location in prostate cancer.

The Prognostic Value of Lymphovascular Invasion in Patients With Upper Tract Urinary Carcinoma After Surgery: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background and Purpose: Although the prognostic value of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) for upper tract urinary carcinoma (UTUC) has been reported, there is a lack of consensus regarding the prognostic factor of LVI in UTUC after radical nephroureterectomy (RNU). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the contemporary role of LVI using systematic review and meta-analysis.

Materials and Methods: Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines, we performed a systematic search of Web of Science, PubMed, and EMBASE for all reports published up to July 2019. Cumulative analyses of hazard ratios (HRs)/odds ratios (ORs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals were conducted to assess the association between LVI and oncological outcomes and clinicopathological features.

Results: Our meta-analysis included 31 eligible studies containing 14,653 patients with UTUC (81–1,363 per study). Our results indicated a significant correlation of LVI with worse cancer-specific survival (HR = 1.59, p < 0.001), overall survival (HR = 1.55, p < 0.001), recurrence-free survival (HR = 1.46, p < 0.001), cancer-specific mortality (HR = 1.25, p = 0.047), and recurrence (HR = 1.23, p = 0.026). LVI was also correlated with advanced tumor stage (III/IV vs. I/II: OR = 7.63, p < 0.001), higher tumor grade (3 vs. 1/2: OR = 5.61, p < 0.001), lymph node metastasis (yes vs. no: OR = 4.95, p < 0.001), carcinoma in situ (yes vs. no: OR = 1.92, p < 0.001), and positive surgical margin (yes vs. no: OR = 4.38, p < 0.001), but not related to gender (male vs. female: OR = 0.98, p = 0.825), and multifocality (multifocal vs. unifocal: OR = 1.09, p = 0.555). The funnel plot test indicated no significant publication bias.

Conclusions: This study demonstrated that LVI was associated with aggressive clinicopathological features. LVI may serve as a poor prognostic factor for patients with UTUC after RNU.

IMP3 overexpression occurs in various important cancer types and is linked to aggressive tumor features: A tissue microarray study on 8,877 human cancers and normal tissues

IMP3 is an RNA binding protein required for ribosomal RNA processing, which has been suggested to be a prognostic marker in a large variety of human types of cancer. However, available data on the prevalence of IMP3 expression are largely discrepant. To systematically investigate the epidemiology and clinical relevance of IMP3 expression in human cancers we employed a two-step tissue microarrays (TMAs) approach. First, a normal tissue TMA and a multi-tumor TMA were analyzed for immunohistochemically detectable expression of IMP3 in 76 different normal tissue types and 3889 cancer samples from 95 different tumor categories. In a second step, we searched for associations between IMP3 expression and tumor phenotype and patient prognosis in TMAs containing 697 urinary bladder cancers, 1711 colon cancers, 343 esophageal adenocarcinomas, 251 esophageal squamous cell cancers, 673 lung cancers), 275 pancreatic cancers and 230 stomach cancers. In normal tissues, unequivocal IMP3 expression was found in placenta, lymphocytes and some types of glandular epithelial cells. In cancers, at least one case with weak expression could be found in 76 out of 95 (80%) different tumor types and 64 entities (67%) had at least one tumor with strong positivity. IMP3 expression was most frequently found in testicular cancer (including 71% seminomas and 96% non-seminomas), neuroblastoma (88%), and squamous cell cancer of various origins. Significant associations were found between IMP3 and adverse tumor features in esophageal adenocarcinomas and cancers of the urinary bladder, lung, stomach, and pancreas. In summary, IMP3 was frequently expressed in many different tumor types, and was typically associated with aggressive tumor features.

Impact of tumor architecture on disease recurrence and cancer-specific mortality of upper tract urothelial carcinoma treated with radical nephroureterectomy

Upper tract urinary carcinoma (UTUC) is a relatively uncommon but aggressive disease. Recent publications have assessed the prognostic significance of tumor architecture in UTUC, but there is still controversy regarding the significance and importance of tumor architecture on disease recurrence. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 101 patients with clinical UTUC who had undergone surgery. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to identify factors associated with disease recurrence and cancer-specific mortality. As our single center study and the limited sample size may influence the clinical significance, we further quantitatively combined the results with those of existing published literature through a meta-analysis compiled from searching several databases. At a median follow-up of 41.3 months, 25 patients experienced disease recurrence. Spearman's correlation analysis showed that tumor architecture was found to be positively correlated with the tumor location and the histological grade. Kaplan-Meier curves showed that patients with sessile tumor architecture had significantly poor recurrence free survival (RFS) and cancer specific survival (CSS). Furthermore, multivariate analysis suggested that tumor architecture was independent prognostic factors for RFS (Hazard ratio, HR = 2.648) and CSS (HR = 2.072) in UTUC patients. A meta-analysis of investigating tumor architecture and its effects on UTUC prognosis was conducted. After searching PubMed, Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library and Scopus databases, 17 articles met the eligibility criteria for this analysis. The eligible studies included a total of 14,368 patients and combined results showed that sessile tumor architecture was associated with both disease recurrence with a pooled HR estimate of 1.454 and cancer-specific mortality with a pooled HR estimate of 1.416. Tumor architecture is an independent predictor for disease recurrence after radical nephroureterectomy for UTUC. Therefore, closer surveillance is necessary, especially in patients with sessile tumor architecture.

Prognostic value of high IMP3 expression in solid tumors: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Accumulated studies have investigated the prognostic role of insulin-like growth factor II mRNA-binding protein 3 (IMP3) in various cancers, but inconsistent and controversial results were obtained. Therefore, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the potential value of IMP3 in the prognostic prediction of human solid tumors.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A systematic literature search in the electronic databases PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane library (updated to April 2016) was conducted to identify eligible studies. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for survival outcomes were calculated and gathered using STATA 12.0 software.

RESULTS

A total of 53 studies containing 8,937 patients with solid tumors were included in this meta-analysis. High IMP3 expression was significantly associated with worse overall survival (OS) of solid tumors (HR =2.08, 95% CI: 1.80-2.42, P<0.001). Similar results were observed in cancer-specific survival (CSS), disease-free survival (DFS), recurrence-free survival (RFS), progression-free survival (PFS), and metastasis-free survival (MFS). Further subgroup analysis stratified by tumor type showed that elevated IMP3 expression was associated with poor OS in renal cell carcinoma (RCC), lung cancer, oral cancer, urothelial carcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer, and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC).

CONCLUSION

The current evidence suggests that high IMP3 expression is associated with poor prognosis in most solid tumors. IMP3 is a potential valuable prognostic factor and might serve as a promising biomarker to guide clinical decisions in human solid tumors.

Increased nucleophosmin expression is a strong predictor of recurrence and prognosis in patients with N0M0 upper tract urothelial carcinoma undergoing radical nephroureterectomy

PURPOSE

We aimed to evaluate whether increased nucleophosmin expression predicts recurrence and survival in upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC).

METHODS

Specimens from 101 patients with N0M0 UTUC undergoing radical nephroureterectomy were evaluated. Nucleophosmin expression was determined immunohistochemically and categorized into two groups according to nucleophosmin staining intensity. The association between nucleophosmin expression and various clinicopathological factors including Ki-67 expression was analyzed. Multivariate analyses were performed to identify the independent predictors of extraurothelial recurrence and cancer-specific survival.

RESULTS

High nucleophosmin expression was significantly correlated with tumor location, pT ≥3, lymphovascular invasion, lymph node metastasis, and high Ki-67 expression. Patients whose tumors demonstrated high nucleophosmin expression had a significantly higher rate of extraurothelial recurrence and a lower survival rate than those with low nucleophosmin expression. Multivariate analysis showed that pT ≥3, lymph node metastasis, high nucleophosmin expression, and high Ki-67 expression were independent predictors of extraurothelial recurrence. When patients were stratified into three groups according to the number of risk factors, the 2-year extraurothelial recurrence-free survival rates were 92.9% in patients with 0 or 1 risk factor, 76.5% in patients with 2 risk factors, and 9.1% in patients with 3 or 4 risk factors. Regarding cancer-specific survival, lymphovascular invasion and high nucleophosmin expression were independent predictors.

CONCLUSIONS

Increased nucleophosmin expression was a strong predictor of extraurothelial recurrence and cancer-specific survival in patients with N0M0 UTUC undergoing radical nephroureterectomy. Our risk stratification models integrating nucleophosmin expression may provide valuable information on disease recurrence and prognosis.

Predictive models and prognostic factors for upper tract urothelial carcinoma: a comprehensive review of the literature

In the context of customized patient care for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC), decision-making could be facilitated by risk assessment and prediction tools. The aim of this study was to provide a critical overview of existing predictive models and to review emerging promising prognostic factors for UTUC. A literature search of articles published in English from January 2000 to June 2016 was performed using PubMed. Studies on risk group stratification models and predictive tools in UTUC were selected, together with studies on predictive factors and biomarkers associated with advanced-stage UTUC and oncological outcomes after surgery. Various predictive tools have been described for advanced-stage UTUC assessment, disease recurrence and cancer-specific survival (CSS). Most of these models are based on well-established prognostic factors such as tumor stage, grade and lymph node (LN) metastasis, but some also integrate newly described prognostic factors and biomarkers. These new prediction tools seem to reach a high level of accuracy, but they lack external validation and decision-making analysis. The combinations of patient-, pathology- and surgery-related factors together with novel biomarkers have led to promising predictive tools for oncological outcomes in UTUC. However, external validation of these predictive models is a prerequisite before their introduction into daily practice. New models predicting response to therapy are urgently needed to allow accurate and safe individualized management in this heterogeneous disease.

Prognostic role of ERCC1 protein expression in upper tract urothelial carcinoma following radical nephroureterectomy with curative intent

BACKGROUND

Excision repair cross-complementing 1 (ERCC1) has been associated with outcomes of urothelial carcinoma of the bladder, but was not yet studied in upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC). The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic role of ERCC1 expression in a large international cohort of UTUC patients.

METHODS

Immunohistochemical ERCC1 expression was evaluated in 716 UTUC patients who underwent radical nephroureterectomy with curative intent. ERCC1 was considered positive when the H-score was >1.0. Associations with overall survival and cancer-specific survival were assessed using univariable and multivariable Cox models.

RESULTS

ERCC1 was expressed in 303 tumors (42.3 %) and linked with the presence of tumor necrosis (16.2 vs. 10.4 %, p = 0.023), but not with any other clinical or pathological variable. ERCC1 status did not predict cancer-specific survival and overall survival on both univariable (p = 0.70 and 0.32, respectively) and multivariable analyses (p = 0.48 and 0.33, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

ERCC1 is expressed in a significant proportion of UTUC and is linked with tumor necrosis, but its expression appears not to be associated with prognosis following radical nephroureterectomy.

Survivin is not an independent prognostic factor for patients with upper tract urothelial carcinoma: a multi-institutional study

OBJECTIVE

Several small single-center studies have reported conflicting results on the prognostic value of survivin expression in upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) following radical nephroureterectomy. We attempted to validate the prognostic utility of survivin using a large multi-institutional cohort.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Survivin expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in tumor tissue from 732 patients with unilateral, sporadic UTUC treated with radical nephroureterectomy between 1990 and 2008 at 7 centers. Survivin expression was considered altered when at least 10% of the tumor cells stained positive. Associations of altered survivin expression with recurrence-free survival (RFS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) were evaluated using Cox proportional hazards regression models.

RESULTS

Altered survivin expression was observed in 288 (39.3%) tumors and was associated with more advanced pathological tumor stages (P<0.001), lymph node metastases (P<0.001), lymphovascular invasion (P<0.001), tumor necrosis (P = 0.027), and tumor architecture (P<0.001). Median follow-up was 35 (16-64) months. There were 191 (25.4%) patients who experienced disease recurrence, and 165 patients (21.9%) died of the disease. In the univariable analysis, altered survivin expression was significantly associated with worse RFS and CSS (each P<0.001); however, altered survivin expression did not achieve independent predictive status on multivariable models (P = 0.24 and P = 0.53). Similarly, survivin was not independently associated with outcomes in subgroup analyses, including patients with high-grade tumors.

CONCLUSIONS

In UTUC, altered survivin expression is associated with worse clinicopathological features and worse RFS and CSS. However, it does not appear to be independently associated with cancer outcomes when considering standard prognostic factors.

Clinical implications of insulin-like growth factor II mRNA-binding protein 3 expression in non-small cell lung carcinoma

In order to examine the role of insulin-like growth factor II mRNA-binding protein 3 (IMP3) expression for the prognostic evaluation of non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), a total of 186 breast cancer patients, with adjacent non-tumor lung tissues, were selected for immunohistochemical staining of IMP3 protein. The NSCLC tissues and paired adjacent non-tumor tissues of six patients were quantified using reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The correlations between IMP3 overexpression and the clinical features of NSCLC were evaluated using the χ² test and Fisher’s exact test. The survival rate was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the association between prognostic factors and patient survival was also analyzed by Cox’s proportional hazards models. The results showed that IMP3 protein exhibited a mainly cytoplasmic staining pattern in the NSCLC tissues. The positive rate of IMP3 protein expression was 74.7% (139/186) in the NSCLC tissues and was significantly higher than the rate of 19.9% (37/186) in the adjacent non-tumor tissues. The expression rate of the NQO1 protein was correlated with a large tumor size, poor differentiation, lymph node metastasis, late clinical stage, and disease-free and overall survival rates in the NSCLC patients. In the early- and late-stage NSCLC groups, the disease-free and overall survival rates of the patients with IMP3 expression were significantly lower than those of the patients without IMP3 expression. Further analysis using Cox’s proportional hazard regression model revealed that IMP3 expression was a significant independent hazard factor for the overall survival rate of patients with NSCLC. In conclusion, the present study found that IMP3 plays a significant role in the progression of NSCLC, and that it may potentially be used as an independent biomarker for prognostic evaluation of the cancer.

The role of the oncofetal IGF2 mRNA-binding protein 3 (IGF2BP3) in cancer

The post-transcriptional control of gene expression mediated by RNA-binding proteins (RBPs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) as well as miRNAs is essential to determine tumor cell fate and thus is a major determinant in cancerogenesis. The IGF2 mRNA binding protein family (IGF2BPs) comprises three RBPs. Two members of the family, IGF2BP1 and IGF2BP3, are bona fide oncofetal proteins, which are de novo synthesized in various human cancers. In vitro studies revealed that IGF2BPs serve as post-transcriptional fine-tuners modulating the expression of genes implicated in the control of tumor cell proliferation, survival, chemo-resistance and metastasis. Consistently, the expression of both IGF2BP family members was reported to correlate with an overall poor prognosis and metastasis in various human cancers. Due to the fact that most reports used a pan-IGF2BP antibody for studying IGF2BP expression in cancer, paralogue-specific functions can barely be evaluated at present. Nonetheless, the accordance of IGF2BPs' role in promoting an aggressive phenotype of tumor-derived cells in vitro and their upregulated expression in aggressive malignancies provides strong evidence that IGF2BPs are powerful post-transcriptional oncogenes enhancing tumor growth, drug-resistance and metastasis. This suggests IGF2BPs as powerful biomarkers and candidate targets for cancer therapy.