DeCure's autonomous Cancer AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for tongue cancer — screening already-approved drugs against its 26-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleTongue cancer maps to a 26-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for tongue cancer is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
glucosylceramidase beta 3 (gene/pseudogene) (GBA3) — GBA3 is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet bgcdrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 2E9L · 1.6 Å · ligand beta-D-glucopyranose (BGC). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
A 1995 review of 63 primary tongue cancer cases treated between 1985 and 1994 reported an overall five-year survival rate of 52.1%. The male-to-female ratio was 1.4 to 1, and incidence peaked in the sixth decade. The authors noted that extended surgery with reconstructive procedures in the later five-year period improved the three-year survival rate compared to the earlier five-year period, but no specific survival numbers for those subgroups were given.
A 2021 case report described a 66-year-old woman with locoregional advanced tongue cancer who achieved complete remission after a sequence of treatments. She received induction chemotherapy with docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil, followed by intensity-modulated bioradiotherapy and then 70 cycles of cetuximab monotherapy. After primary tumour recurrence, she was given nivolumab monotherapy, and the recurrent lesion disappeared after 18 cycles. She remained alive and well for more than five years. This is a single case, not a controlled trial, and the contribution of each individual drug to the outcome cannot be separated.
A 2019 bioinformatics study analysed gene expression datasets GSE2280 and TCGA tongue cancer data. It identified 76 deregulated genes and, through coexpression network and survival analysis, singled out IER3 as a gene associated with prognosis and lymph node metastasis. In Tca-8113 tongue cancer cells, knocking down IER3 with siRNA reduced proliferation, colony formation, migration, and invasion in vitro, and also decreased secretion of VEGF-C. Conditioned medium from these cells promoted lymphangiogenesis and migration of lymphatic endothelial cells, and IER3 knockdown suppressed those effects. The study was entirely preclinical, using cell lines and public datasets, with no patient treatment or clinical validation of IER3 as a drug target.
What is still missing: prospective clinical trials testing any of these approaches in defined patient populations, validated biomarkers to stratify patients who might benefit from IER3-targeted strategies or from nivolumab after recurrence, and funding for adequately powered studies rather than single-case reports or retrospective reviews. The 1995 survival figure is decades old and may not reflect current outcomes with modern surgery or systemic therapy.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Cancer Cell International · 2019 · 22 citations · open access
Expression profile analysis identifies IER3 to predict overall survival and promote lymph node metastasis in tongue cancer
AbstractBACKGROUND: Lymph node metastasis is one of the most important factors affecting the prognosis of tongue cancer, and the molecular mechanism regulating lymph node metastasis of tongue cancer is poorly known. METHODS: The gene expression dataset GSE2280 and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) tongue cancer dataset were downloaded. R software was used to identify the differentially expressed hallmark gene sets and individual genes between metastatic lymph node tissues and primary tongue cancer tissues, and the Kaplan-Meier method was used to evaluate the association with overall survival. The screening and validation of functional genes was performed using western blot, q-PCR, CCK-8, migration and invasion assays, and lymphangiogenesis was examined by using a tube formation assay. RESULTS: Thirteen common hallmark gene sets were found based on Gene Set Variation Analysis (GSVA) and then subjected to differential gene expression analysis, by which 76 deregulated genes were found. Gene coexpression network analysis and survival analysis further confirmed that IER3 was the key gene associated with the prognosis and lymph node metastasis of tongue cancer patients. Knockdown of IER3 with siRNA inhibited the proliferation, colony formation, migration and invasion of Tca-8113 cells in vitro and it also inhibited the secretion and expression of VEGF-C in these cells. The culture supernatant of Tca-8113 cells could promote lymphangiogenesis and migration of lymphatic endothelial cells, and knockdown of IER3 in Tca-8113 cells suppressed these processes. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that IER3 plays important roles in lymphangiogenesis regulation and prognosis in tongue cancer and might be a potential therapeutic target.
Nivolumab monotherapy after induction chemotherapy, bioradiotherapy, and cetuximab monotherapy leading to complete remission of locoregional advanced tongue cancer: A case report
AbstractAbstract Herein, we report on a 66‐year‐old woman with locoregional advanced tongue cancer. She was diagnosed with left side tongue carcinoma and achieved complete remission using nivolumab monotherapy after induction chemotherapy (IC) with docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5‐fluorouracil, followed by intensity‐modulated bioradiotherapy and cetuximab monotherapy. Following bioradiotherapy, she was administered 70 cycles of cetuximab monotherapy. Both IC and bioradiotherapy exerted antitumor effects. However, primary tumor recurrence occurred. She received nivolumab, and the recurrent lesion disappeared after 18 cycles. She has been alive and well for >5 years, showing a successful locoregional control for advanced tongue cancer during this period.
A Review of 63 Cases of Malignant Tumors of the Tongue
AbstractWe reviewed the records of 63 primary cases with tongue cancer treated between January 1985and December 1994 in our department. The male to female ratio was 1.4 to 1. The incidence of tongue cancer peaked in the sixth decade of life. The five-year survival rate was 52.1% overall. In the recent five years, however, extended surgery with reconstructive procedures markedly improved the three-year survival rate as compared to that in the previous five-year. It is expected that survival rate will further improve in the future.
Expression profile analysis identifies IER3 to predict overall survival and promote lymph node metastasis in tongue cancer
AbstractAbstract Background Lymph node metastasis is one of the most important factors affecting the prognosis of tongue cancer, and the molecular mechanism regulating lymph node metastasis of tongue cancer is poorly known. Methods The gene expression dataset GSE2280 and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) tongue cancer dataset were downloaded. R software was used to identify the differentially expressed hallmark gene sets and individual genes between metastatic lymph node tissues and primary tongue cancer tissues, and the Kaplan–Meier method was used to evaluate the association with overall survival. The screening and validation of functional genes was performed using western blot, q-PCR, CCK-8, migration and invasion assays, and lymphangiogenesis was examined by using a tube formation assay. Results Thirteen common hallmark gene sets were found based on Gene Set Variation Analysis (GSVA) and then subjected to differential gene expression analysis, by which 76 deregulated genes were found. Gene coexpression network analysis and survival analysis further confirmed that IER3 was the key gene associated with the prognosis and lymph node metastasis of tongue cancer patients. Knockdown of IER3 with siRNA inhibited the proliferation, colony formation, migration and invasion of Tca-8113 cells in vitro and it also inhibited the secretion and expression of VEGF-C in these cells. The culture supernatant of Tca-8113 cells could promote lymphangiogenesis and migration of lymphatic endothelial cells, and knockdown of IER3 in Tca-8113 cells suppressed these processes. Conclusion Our study demonstrated that IER3 plays important roles in lymphangiogenesis regulation and prognosis in tongue cancer and might be a potential therapeutic target.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
DeCure is a research and publication project, not medical advice and not a treatment. "DeCure for X" describes a research goal, not a claim that a cure exists. Backing a cure is a contribution to fund the research — it is not an investment, and confers no yield, royalty, equity or IP ownership. Papers are published open-access by the DeCure.ai DAO.
