Over the last decade, a large number of research articles have been published demonstrating regeneration and/or neuroprotection of retinal ganglion cells following manipulation of specific genetic and molecular targets. Interestingly, of the targets that have been identified to promote repair following visual system damage, many are genes known to be mutated in different types of cancer. This review explores recent literature on the potential for modulating cancer genes as a therapeutic strategy for visual system repair and looks at the potential clinical challenges associated with implementing this type of therapy. We also discuss signalling mechanisms that have been implicated in cancer and consider how similar mechanisms may improve axonal regeneration in the optic nerve.

在过去十年中，已发表了大量研究文章，证明了在操纵特定遗传和分子靶标后视网膜神经节细胞的再生和/或神经保护作用。有趣的是，在已确定促进视觉系统损伤后修复的靶标中，许多是已知在不同类型癌症中发生突变的基因。这篇综述探讨了最近关于调节癌症基因作为视觉系统修复治疗策略的潜力的文献，并着眼于与实施这种治疗相关的潜在临床挑战。我们还讨论了与癌症有关的信号传导机制，并考虑了类似的机制如何改善视神经中的轴突再生。