The natural adaptive evolution of cancer: The metastatic ability of cancer cells

Authors

  • Gheorghe-Emilian Olteanu Department of Microscopic Morphology, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania; Clinical Emergency County Hospital “Pius Brinzeu” Timisoara, Center for Gene and Cellular Therapies in the Treatment of Cancer Timisoara – OncoGen, Timisoara, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5921-4634
  • Ioana-Maria Mihai Department of Microscopic Morphology, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0617-4178
  • Florina Bojin Clinical Emergency County Hospital “Pius Brinzeu” Timisoara, Center for Gene and Cellular Therapies in the Treatment of Cancer Timisoara – OncoGen, Timisoara, Romania; Department of Functional Sciences, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania
  • Oana Gavriliuc Clinical Emergency County Hospital “Pius Brinzeu” Timisoara, Center for Gene and Cellular Therapies in the Treatment of Cancer Timisoara – OncoGen, Timisoara, Romania; Department of Functional Sciences, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania
  • Virgil Paunescu Clinical Emergency County Hospital “Pius Brinzeu” Timisoara, Center for Gene and Cellular Therapies in the Treatment of Cancer Timisoara – OncoGen, Timisoara, Romania; Department of Functional Sciences, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17305/bjbms.2019.4565

Keywords:

Cancer, metastasis, macrophage–cancer fusion cells, cancer fusion cells, CFCs, hypothesis, review

Abstract

The ability of cancer to adapt renders it one of the most challenging pathologies of all time. It is the most dreaded pathological entity because of its capacity to metastasize to distant sites in the body, and 90% of all cancer-related deaths recorded to date are attributed to metastasis. Currently, three main theories have been proposed to explain the metastatic pathway of cancer: the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and mesenchymal–epithelial transition (MET) hypothesis (1), the cancer stem cell hypothesis (2), and the macrophage–cancer cell fusion hybrid hypothesis (3). We propose a new hypothesis, i.e., under the effect of particular biochemical and/or physical stressors, cancer cells can undergo nuclear expulsion with subsequent macrophage engulfment and fusion, with the formation of cancer fusion cells (CFCs). The existence of CFCs, if confirmed, would represent a novel metastatic pathway and a shift in the extant dogma of cancer; consequently, new treatment targets would be available for this adaptive pathology.

The natural adaptive evolution of cancer: The metastatic ability of cancer cells

Additional Files

Published

03-08-2020

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Section

Reviews

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How to Cite

1.
The natural adaptive evolution of cancer: The metastatic ability of cancer cells. Biomol Biomed [Internet]. 2020 Aug. 3 [cited 2024 Mar. 19];20(3):303-9. Available from: https://www.bjbms.org/ojs/index.php/bjbms/article/view/4565