Intratumoral Heterogeneity in Cancer Progression and Response to Immunotherapy

Overview

Journal Nat Med

Specialties General Medicine
Molecular Biology

Date 2021 Feb 12

PMID 33574607

Citations 290

Authors

Ilio Vitale

Efrat Shema

Sherene Loi

Lorenzo Galluzzi

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Most (if not all) tumors emerge and progress under a strong evolutionary pressure imposed by trophic, metabolic, immunological, and therapeutic factors. The relative impact of these factors on tumor evolution changes over space and time, ultimately favoring the establishment of a neoplastic microenvironment that exhibits considerable genetic, phenotypic, and behavioral heterogeneity in all its components. Here, we discuss the main sources of intratumoral heterogeneity and its impact on the natural history of the disease, including sensitivity to treatment, as we delineate potential strategies to target such a detrimental feature of aggressive malignancies.

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