Katie Beauchamp, Bruce Moran, Timothy O'Brien, Donal Brennan, John Crown, Kieran Sheahan, Maura Bríd Cotter
{"title":"Carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP): an update for histopathologists.","authors":"Katie Beauchamp, Bruce Moran, Timothy O'Brien, Donal Brennan, John Crown, Kieran Sheahan, Maura Bríd Cotter","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10101-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10101-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP) is a heterogeneous group of metastatic cancers in which the site of origin is not identifiable. These carcinomas have a poor outcome due to their late presentation with metastatic disease, difficulty in identifying the origin and delay in treatment. The aim of the pathologist is to broadly classify and subtype the cancer and, where possible, to confirm the likely primary site as this information best predicts patient outcome and guides treatment. In this review, we provide histopathologists with diagnostic practice points which contribute to identifying the primary origin in such cases. We present the current clinical evaluation and management from the point of view of the oncologist. We discuss the role of the pathologist in the diagnostic pathway including the control of pre-analytical conditions, assessment of sample adequacy, diagnosis of cancer including diagnostic pitfalls, and evaluation of prognostic and predictive markers. An integrated diagnostic report is ideal in cases of CUP, with results discussed at a forum such as a molecular tumour board and matched with targeted treatment. This highly specialized evolving area ultimately leads to personalized oncology and potentially improved outcomes for patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1189-1200"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10713813/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9737170","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gracjana Krzysiek-Maczka, Tomasz Brzozowski, Agata Ptak-Belowska
{"title":"Helicobacter pylori-activated fibroblasts as a silent partner in gastric cancer development.","authors":"Gracjana Krzysiek-Maczka, Tomasz Brzozowski, Agata Ptak-Belowska","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10122-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10122-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The discovery of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection of gastric mucosa leading to active chronic gastritis, gastroduodenal ulcers, and MALT lymphoma laid the groundwork for understanding of the general relationship between chronic infection, inflammation, and cancer. Nevertheless, this sequence of events is still far from full understanding with new players and mediators being constantly identified. Originally, the Hp virulence factors affecting mainly gastric epithelium were proposed to contribute considerably to gastric inflammation, ulceration, and cancer. Furthermore, it has been shown that Hp possesses the ability to penetrate the mucus layer and directly interact with stroma components including fibroblasts and myofibroblasts. These cells, which are the source of biophysical and biochemical signals providing the proper balance between cell proliferation and differentiation within gastric epithelial stem cell compartment, when exposed to Hp, can convert into cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype. The crosstalk between fibroblasts and myofibroblasts with gastric epithelial cells including stem/progenitor cell niche involves several pathways mediated by non-coding RNAs, Wnt, BMP, TGF-β, and Notch signaling ligands. The current review concentrates on the consequences of Hp-induced increase in gastric fibroblast and myofibroblast number, and their activation towards CAFs with the emphasis to the altered communication between mesenchymal and epithelial cell compartment, which may lead to inflammation, epithelial stem cell overproliferation, disturbed differentiation, and gradual gastric cancer development. Thus, Hp-activated fibroblasts may constitute the target for anti-cancer treatment and, importantly, for the pharmacotherapies diminishing their activation particularly at the early stages of Hp infection.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1219-1256"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10713772/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9882087","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Metastasis suppressor genes in clinical practice: are they druggable?","authors":"Irwin H Gelman","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10135-w","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10135-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Since the identification of NM23 (now called NME1) as the first metastasis suppressor gene (MSG), a small number of other gene products and non-coding RNAs have been identified that suppress specific parameters of the metastatic cascade, yet which have little or no ability to regulate primary tumor initiation or maintenance. MSG can regulate various pathways or cell biological functions such as those controlling mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway mediators, cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix protein adhesion, cytoskeletal architecture, G-protein-coupled receptors, apoptosis, and transcriptional complexes. One defining facet of this gene class is that their expression is typically downregulated, not mutated, in metastasis, such that any effective therapeutic intervention would involve their re-expression. This review will address the therapeutic targeting of MSG, once thought to be a daunting task only facilitated by ectopically re-expressing MSG in metastatic cells in vivo. Examples will be cited of attempts to identify actionable oncogenic pathways that might suppress the formation or progression of metastases through the re-expression of specific metastasis suppressors.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1169-1188"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41118284","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Metastasis suppressor genes and their role in the tumor microenvironment.","authors":"Cristina Megino-Luque, Jose Javier Bravo-Cordero","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10155-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10155-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The metastatic cascade is a complex process with multiple factors contributing to the seeding and growth of cancer cells at metastatic sites. Within this complex process, several genes have been identified as metastasis suppressors, playing a role in the inhibition of metastasis. Interestingly, some of these genes have been shown to also play a role in regulating the tumor microenvironment. In this review, we comment on the recent developments in the biology of metastasis suppressor genes and their crosstalk with the microenvironment.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1147-1154"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10842895/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138046175","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Is cancer an intelligent species?","authors":"Chiara Nicolazzo, Federica Francescangeli, Valentina Magri, Alessandro Giuliani, Ann Zeuner, Paola Gazzaniga","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10123-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10123-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Some relevant emerging properties of intelligent systems are \"adaptation to a changing environment,\" \"reaction to unexpected situations,\" \"capacity of problem solving,\" and \"ability to communicate.\" Single cells have remarkable abilities to adapt, make adequate context-dependent decision, take constructive actions, and communicate, thus theoretically meeting all the above-mentioned requirements. From a biological point of view, cancer can be viewed as an invasive species, composed of cells that move from primary to distant sites, being continuously exposed to changes in the environmental conditions. Blood represents the first hostile habitat that a cancer cell encounters once detached from the primary site, so that cancer cells must rapidly carry out multiple adaptation strategies to survive. The aim of this review was to deepen the adaptation mechanisms of cancer cells in the blood microenvironment, particularly referring to four adaptation strategies typical of animal species (phenotypic adaptation, metabolic adaptation, niche adaptation, and collective adaptation), which together define the broad concept of biological intelligence. We provided evidence that the required adaptations (either structural, metabolic, and related to metastatic niche formation) and \"social\" behavior are useful principles allowing putting into a coherent frame many features of circulating cancer cells. This interpretative frame is described by the comparison with analog behavioral traits typical of various animal models.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1201-1218"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10713722/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9989116","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A perspective on the metastasis suppressor field.","authors":"Imran Khan, Patricia S Steeg","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10131-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10131-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Metastasis is the leading cause of cancer patient mortality. Metastasis suppressors are genes that, upon reexpression in metastatic tumor cells to levels observed in their nonmetastatic counterparts, significantly reduce metastasis without affecting the growth of the primary tumor. Analysis of > 30 metastasis suppressors revealed complex mechanisms of action that include multiple signaling pathways, transcriptional patterns, posttranscriptional regulatory mechanisms, and potential contributions of genomic stability. Clinical testing of strategies to re-establish a validated metastasis suppressor pathway in tumors is best directed to the adjuvant setting, with the goal of inhibiting the outgrowth of occult micrometastases.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1061-1063"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10001110","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Tumor ablation induced anti-tumor immunity: destruction of the tumor in situ with the aim to evoke a robust anti-tumor immune response.","authors":"Yona Keisari, Itzhak Kelson","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10150-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10150-x","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1065-1068"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10713665/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89716968","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cancer metastasis under the magnifying glass of epigenetics and epitranscriptomics.","authors":"Maxime Janin, Veronica Davalos, Manel Esteller","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10120-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10120-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Most of the cancer-associated mortality and morbidity can be attributed to metastasis. The role of epigenetic and epitranscriptomic alterations in cancer origin and progression has been extensively demonstrated during the last years. Both regulations share similar mechanisms driven by DNA or RNA modifiers, namely writers, readers, and erasers; enzymes responsible of respectively introducing, recognizing, or removing the epigenetic or epitranscriptomic modifications. Epigenetic regulation is achieved by DNA methylation, histone modifications, non-coding RNAs, chromatin accessibility, and enhancer reprogramming. In parallel, regulation at RNA level, named epitranscriptomic, is driven by a wide diversity of chemical modifications in mostly all RNA molecules. These two-layer regulatory mechanisms are finely controlled in normal tissue, and dysregulations are associated with every hallmark of human cancer. In this review, we provide an overview of the current state of knowledge regarding epigenetic and epitranscriptomic alterations governing tumor metastasis, and compare pathways regulated at DNA or RNA levels to shed light on a possible epi-crosstalk in cancer metastasis. A deeper understanding on these mechanisms could have important clinical implications for the prevention of advanced malignancies and the management of the disseminated diseases. Additionally, as these epi-alterations can potentially be reversed by small molecules or inhibitors against epi-modifiers, novel therapeutic alternatives could be envisioned.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1071-1112"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10713773/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10067652","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lukas Krauß, Carolin Schneider, Elisabeth Hessmann, Dieter Saur, Günter Schneider
{"title":"Epigenetic control of pancreatic cancer metastasis.","authors":"Lukas Krauß, Carolin Schneider, Elisabeth Hessmann, Dieter Saur, Günter Schneider","doi":"10.1007/s10555-023-10132-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10555-023-10132-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Surgical resection, when combined with chemotherapy, has been shown to significantly improve the survival rate of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). However, this treatment option is only feasible for a fraction of patients, as more than 50% of cases are diagnosed with metastasis. The multifaceted process of metastasis is still not fully understood, but recent data suggest that transcriptional and epigenetic plasticity play significant roles. Interfering with epigenetic reprogramming can potentially control the adaptive processes responsible for metastatic progression and therapy resistance, thereby enhancing treatment responses and preventing recurrence. This review will focus on the relevance of histone-modifying enzymes in pancreatic cancer, specifically on their impact on the metastatic cascade. Additionally, it will also provide a brief update on the current clinical developments in epigenetic therapies.</p>","PeriodicalId":9489,"journal":{"name":"Cancer and Metastasis Reviews","volume":" ","pages":"1113-1131"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10713713/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10148375","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}