Authors: Fang Yang Jing Xu Lin Tang Xiaoxiang Guan
Publish Date: 2016/08/16
Volume: 74, Issue: 6, Pages: 951-966
Abstract
Breast cancers have been increasingly recognized as malignancies displaying frequent inter and intratumor heterogeneity This heterogeneity is represented by diverse subtypes and complexity within tumors and impinges on response to therapy metastasis and prognosis Cancer stem cells CSCs a subpopulation of cancer cells endowed with selfrenewal and differentiation capacity have been suggested to contribute to tumor heterogeneity The CSC concept posits a hierarchical organization of tumors at the apex of which are stem cells that drive tumor initiation progression and recurrence In breast cancer CSCs have been proposed to contribute to malignant progression suggesting that targeting breast cancer stem cells BCSCs may improve treatment efficacy Currently several markers have been reported to identify BCSCs However there is objective variability with respect to the frequency and phenotype of BCSCs among different breast cancer cell lines and patients and the regulatory mechanisms of BCSCs remain unclear In this review we summarize current literature about the diversity of BCSC markers the roles of BCSCs in tumor development and the regulatory mechanisms of BCSCs We also highlight the most recent advances in BCSC targeting therapies and the challenges in translating the knowledge into clinical practice
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