Chemokines and Their Receptors: Potential Therapeutic Targets for Bone Cancer Pain

Bone cancer pain (BCP) is still an intractable problem currently because the analgesic pharmacological intervention remains insufficient. Thus, the development of novel therapeutic target is critical for the treatment of BCP. Emerging evidence demonstrated that some chemokines and their receptors contribute to the induction and maintenance of BCP. In this article, we reviewed the current evidence for the role of different chemokines and their receptors (e.g. CXCL12/CXCR4, CXCL1/CXCR2, CCL2/CCR2, CCL5/CCR5, CX3CL1/CX3CR1 and CXCL10/CXCR3) in mediating BCP. By extensively understanding the involvement of chemokines and their receptors in BCP, novel therapeutic targets may be revealed for the treatment of BCP. Keywords: Bone cancer pain, chemokine, chemokine receptor, therapeutic target.