Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis
Metastasis formation is a hallmark of invasive cancers and it is achieved through the shedding of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from the primary site into the blood circulation. There, CTCs are found as single cells or as multicellular clusters, with clusters carrying an elevated ability to survive...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2020-02-01
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| Series: | Biomedical Journal |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2319417019305086 |
| _version_ | 1797999732839153664 |
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| author | Nicola Aceto |
| author_facet | Nicola Aceto |
| author_sort | Nicola Aceto |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Metastasis formation is a hallmark of invasive cancers and it is achieved through the shedding of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from the primary site into the blood circulation. There, CTCs are found as single cells or as multicellular clusters, with clusters carrying an elevated ability to survive within the bloodstream and initiate new metastatic lesions at distant sites. Clusters of CTCs include homotypic clusters made of cancer cells only, as well as heterotypic clusters that incorporate stromal or immune cells along with cancer cells. Both homotypic and heterotypic CTC clusters are characterized by a high metastasis-forming capability, high proliferation rate and by distinct molecular features compared to single CTCs, and their presence in the peripheral circulation of cancer patients is generally associated with a poor prognosis. In this short review, we summarize the current literature that describes homotypic and heterotypic CTC clusters, both in the context of their molecular characteristics as well as their value in the clinical setting. While CTC clusters have only recently emerged as key players in the metastatic process and many aspects of their biology remain to be investigated, a detailed understanding of their vulnerabilities may pave the way towards the generation of new metastasis-suppressing agents. Keywords: Circulating tumor cells, Circulating tumor cell clusters, Metastasis, Cell–cell interactions, Liquid biopsy |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T11:09:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2ffafc5ad12d4ed9ad8833bc3fa97ad5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2319-4170 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T11:09:26Z |
| publishDate | 2020-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Biomedical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-2ffafc5ad12d4ed9ad8833bc3fa97ad52022-12-22T04:27:47ZengElsevierBiomedical Journal2319-41702020-02-014311823Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasisNicola Aceto0Corresponding author. University of Basel and University Hospital Basel, Spitalstrasse 21, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.; Department of Biomedicine, Cancer Metastasis Laboratory, University of Basel and University Hospital Basel, Basel, SwitzerlandMetastasis formation is a hallmark of invasive cancers and it is achieved through the shedding of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from the primary site into the blood circulation. There, CTCs are found as single cells or as multicellular clusters, with clusters carrying an elevated ability to survive within the bloodstream and initiate new metastatic lesions at distant sites. Clusters of CTCs include homotypic clusters made of cancer cells only, as well as heterotypic clusters that incorporate stromal or immune cells along with cancer cells. Both homotypic and heterotypic CTC clusters are characterized by a high metastasis-forming capability, high proliferation rate and by distinct molecular features compared to single CTCs, and their presence in the peripheral circulation of cancer patients is generally associated with a poor prognosis. In this short review, we summarize the current literature that describes homotypic and heterotypic CTC clusters, both in the context of their molecular characteristics as well as their value in the clinical setting. While CTC clusters have only recently emerged as key players in the metastatic process and many aspects of their biology remain to be investigated, a detailed understanding of their vulnerabilities may pave the way towards the generation of new metastasis-suppressing agents. Keywords: Circulating tumor cells, Circulating tumor cell clusters, Metastasis, Cell–cell interactions, Liquid biopsyhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2319417019305086 |
| spellingShingle | Nicola Aceto Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis Biomedical Journal |
| title | Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis |
| title_full | Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis |
| title_fullStr | Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis |
| title_short | Bring along your friends: Homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis |
| title_sort | bring along your friends homotypic and heterotypic circulating tumor cell clustering to accelerate metastasis |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2319417019305086 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nicolaaceto bringalongyourfriendshomotypicandheterotypiccirculatingtumorcellclusteringtoacceleratemetastasis |