The elucidation of a role of RHBDF2 in growth-factor signaling in esophageal cancer will help to determine whether targeting this pathway in chemotherapy for this and other squamous cell carcinomas will be effective.
Moreover, a locus responsible for hereditary focal non-epidermolytic palmoplantar keratoderma (tylosis oesophageal cancer; TOC), a condition associated with esophageal cancer, has been mapped to the same band.
Moreover, a genetic locus for hereditary focal non-epidermolytic palmoplantar keratoderma, a condition associated with cancer of the esophagus (TOC; Tylosis with Oesophageal Cancer), lies in the same region.
Since the BRCA1 gene lies at 17q21.1 and the TOC locus, associated with esophageal cancer, lies at 17q25.1, either gene could be the target of those losses.
Recently, the tylosis oesophageal cancer (TOC) gene locus has been mapped to 17q25 by linkage analyses of pedigrees with focal nonepidermolytic palmoplantar keratoderma associated with a high risk of esophageal cancer development.