NF-κB Members Left Home: NF-κB-Independent Roles in Cancer

Nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappa B) has been long considered a master regulator of inflammation and immune responses. Additionally, aberrant NF-kappa B signaling has been linked with carcinogenesis in many types of cancer. In recent years, the study of NF-kappa B members in NF-kappa B unrelated pathways provided novel attractive targets for cancer therapy, specifically linked to particular pathologic responses. Here we review specific functions of I kappa B kinase complexes (IKKs) and I kappa Bs, which have distinctly tumor promoting or suppressing activities in cancer. Understanding how these proteins are regulated in a tumor-related context will provide new opportunities for drug development.