%0 Journal Article %T Mechanisms of Ovarian Cancer Metastasis: Biochemical Pathways %A Kentaro Nakayama %A Naomi Nakayama %A Hiroshi Katagiri %A Kohji Miyazaki %J International Journal of Molecular Sciences %D 2012 %I MDPI AG %R 10.3390/ijms130911705 %X Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy. Despite advances in chemotherapy, the five-year survival rate of advanced ovarian cancer patients with peritoneal metastasis remains around 30%. The most significant prognostic factor is stage, and most patients present at an advanced stage with peritoneal dissemination. There is often no clearly identifiable precursor lesion; therefore, the events leading to metastatic disease are poorly understood. This article reviews metastatic suppressor genes, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and the tumor microenvironment as they relate to ovarian cancer metastasis. Additionally, novel chemotherapeutic agents targeting the metastasis-related biochemical pathways are discussed. %K cancer %K metastasis suppressor gene %K EMT %K tumor microenvironment %U http://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/13/9/11705