The Role of Epigenetic Changes in Ovarian Cancer: A Review

Ovarian cancer (OC) is a third-most lethal cancer among women after breast and cervical cancer. Epigenetics is the study of altered heritable phenotype(s), changes affecting the gene expression and activity without changes in the DNA sequence. DNA methylation, histone modifications and micro-RNA expression play a pivotal role in the development and proliferation of ovarian cancer. These epigenetic changes are stable and are affiliated with specific disease subtypes. Studies discern that these epigenetic changes can be used as potential biomarker strategy or as a therapeutic lead to diagnose and treat OC. This review highlights the role of epigenetic changes leading to ovarian cancer. Also, since these changes are located in the serum, it alleviates their chances of becoming an efficient and accurate diagnostic biomarker.