Hormones have become a useful therapeutic aspect of clinical endocrinology but how to use them to optimize the health benefits and avoid adverse effects is a major challenge. Estrogen is an indispensable hormone for proper biological functioning but is also implicated with the pathology of both the reproductive and non-reproductive tissues. Abnormal estrogen receptor signaling may increase the risk of development of a variety of diseases including colorectal cancer (CRC). Estrogen receptor beta (ERβ) is the predominant subtype in the colonic epithelium and confers the anti-tumor effect through various mechanisms. Many investigators have embarked on the search for the biological mechanisms by which estrogen and estrogen-like compounds may influence the pathogenesis of CRC. This review explores the recent findings on the therapeutic role of ERβ in the colonic epithelium as a prospective candidate for targeted endocrine therapy in CRC.

中文翻译：

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靶向大肠癌中的雌激素受体。

激素已成为临床内分泌治疗的有用方面，但是如何使用它们来优化健康益处并避免不良反应是一个重大挑战。雌激素是适当的生物学功能必不可少的激素，但也与生殖和非生殖组织的病理有关。雌激素受体信号异常可能增加罹患包括结直肠癌（CRC）在内的多种疾病的风险。雌激素受体β（ERβ）是结肠上皮细胞的主要亚型，并通过多种机制赋予抗肿瘤作用。许多研究人员已着手寻找雌激素和类雌激素化合物可能影响CRC发病机制的生物学机制。