Breast Tumor Heterogeneity: Source of Fitness, Hurdle for Therapy.
- Koren S Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI), Basel, Switzerland.
- Bentires-Alj M Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI), Basel, Switzerland. Electronic address: bentires@fmi.ch.
- 2015-11-23
Published in:
- Molecular cell. - 2015
Animals
Breast Neoplasms
Cell Plasticity
Female
Genetic Heterogeneity
Humans
Neoplastic Stem Cells
Tumor Microenvironment
English
Tumor heterogeneity impinges on prognosis, response to therapy, and metastasis. As such, heterogeneity is one of the most important and clinically relevant areas of cancer research. Breast cancer displays frequent intra- and inter-tumor heterogeneity as the result of genetic and non-genetic alterations that often enhance the vigor of cancer cells. In-depth characterization and understanding of the origin of this phenotypic and molecular diversity is paramount to improving diagnosis, the definition of prognostic and predictive biomarkers, and the design of therapeutic strategies. Here, we summarize current knowledge about sources of breast cancer heterogeneity, its consequences, and possible counter-measures. We discuss especially the impact on tumor heterogeneity of the differentiation state of the cell-of-origin, cancer cell plasticity, the microenvironment, and genetic evolution. Factors that enhance cancer cell vigor are clearly detrimental for patients.
- Language
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- English
- Open access status
- bronze
- Identifiers
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- DOI 10.1016/j.molcel.2015.10.031
- PMID 26590713
- Persistent URL
- https://sonar.ch/global/documents/18239
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