Frizzled 2 as a target for therapeutic antibodies in the treatment of cancer

A method of monitoring Fzd2 downmodulation therapy for cancer that exhibits overexpression of Fzd2 or overexpression of Wnt5a in a subject, comprising:

• a) administering to the subject of an agent that downmodulates Fzd2, such that the agent is delivered to cancer cells of the subject;
• and
• b) measuring one or more of:
• i) the expression of one or more of MMP2, MMP3, MMP9, and serpin E1 in the cancer cells before administration and after administration;
• and
• ii) the phosphorylation level of one or more of STAT3, MEK1/2, ERK1/2 and srk family kinases, in the cancer cells before administration and after administration;
• wherein reduced expression after administration indicates effective therapy and/or reduced phosphorylation after administration indicates effective therapy

A method of treating cancer in a subject comprising,

• a) measuring one or more of:
• i) the expression levels of one or more of MMP2, MMP3, MMP9, sICAM1, and SerpinE1 in the cancer, as compared to an appropriate control;
• and
• ii) the phosphorylation level of one or more of STAT3, MEK1/2, ERK1/2 and srk family kinases in the cancer, as compared to an appropriate control;
• b) administering to the subject of an agent that downmodulates Fzd2, such that the agent is delivered to the cancer cells, when the cancer has increased expression levels or phosphorylation levels, to thereby treat the cancer.