Cancer is a multifaceted global disease. Transformation of a normal to a malignant cell takes several steps, including somatic mutations, epigenetic alterations, metabolic reprogramming and loss of cell growth control. Recently, the mevalonate pathway has emerged as a crucial regulator of tumor biology and a potential therapeutic target. This pathway controls cholesterol production and posttranslational modifications of Rho-GTPases, both of which are linked to several key steps of tumor progression. Inhibitors of the mevalonate pathway induce pleiotropic antitumor-effects in several human malignancies, identifying the pathway as an attractive candidate for novel therapies. In this review, we will provide an overview about the role and regulation of the mevalonate pathway in certain aspects of cancer initiation and progression and its potential for therapeutic intervention in oncology.

中文翻译：

---

胆固醇及其他-甲羟戊酸途径在癌症生物学中的作用。

癌症是多方面的全球性疾病。正常细胞向恶性细胞的转化需要几个步骤，包括体细胞突变，表观遗传改变，代谢重编程和细胞生长控制丧失。最近，甲羟戊酸途径已经成为肿瘤生物学的关键调节剂和潜在的治疗靶标。该途径控制胆固醇的产生和Rho-GTPase的翻译后修饰，两者均与肿瘤进展的几个关键步骤有关。甲羟戊酸途径的抑制剂在几种人类恶性肿瘤中诱导多效性抗肿瘤作用，从而将该途径确定为新颖疗法的有吸引力的候选者。在这篇评论中