Survivin as a Potential Target for Cancer Therapy

In 1997 for the first time, survivin was described by Amborsini et al. as an anti-apoptotic protein. Subsequent studies revealed that survivin is a multifunctional protein that plays critical roles in several crucial cell processes such as apoptosis, cell cycle, chromosome movement, mitosis and cellular stress responses. Moreover, it's overexpression in cancer cells versus normal cells is associated with chemotherapy resistance, increased tumor recurrence, and shorter patient survival. All of these features make survivin a promising target for cancer therapy. Here, we review the potential characteristics of survivin as a tumor marker.