{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,3]],"date-time":"2026-09-03T12:13:58Z","timestamp":1788437638638,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":58,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,1]],"date-time":"2025-12-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1764547200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Pharmacol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    Dimethyl fumarate (DMF) is an approved medication by the FDA for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, primarily targeting and regulating the NF-\u03baB pathway. Recently, its anticancer effects have drawn considerable attention as it not only effectively kills a panel of different cancer cells\n                    <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                    and\n                    <jats:italic>in vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                    , but also synergizes with other conventional or targeted chemotherapeutics in certain resistant or refractory cancer cells. Mechanism studies showed that in addition to inhibiting NF-\u03baB and stimulating Nrf2, DMF functioned as a chemotherapy also by suppressing inflammation, inhibiting epigenetic modifications, as well as modulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). On the molecular level, DMF can form a covalent bond with the thiol group of a protein. In this paper, we provide a brief review of the anticancer studies of DMF, either as a single agent or in combination regimens. While DMF is a relatively weak cytotoxic agent, it is effective in sensitizing cells to other chemotherapeutic agents. Since DMF is already an approved drug, its fast-track approval for cancers may bring new hope to those chemo-resistant patients who suffer from very limited treatment options.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fphar.2025.1721876","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,1]],"date-time":"2025-12-01T06:24:11Z","timestamp":1764570251000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Repurposing dimethyl fumarate for cancer therapy: current evidence and future directions"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Mingjuan","family":"Zhang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yaping","family":"Jing","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qingbin","family":"Cui","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","first-page":"127","article-title":"Role of dimethyl fumarate in the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme: a review article","volume":"18","author":"Ahmadi-Beni","year":"2019","journal-title":"Iran. 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