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Survival mechanisms of circulating tumor cells and their implications for cancer treatment

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Abstract

Metastasis remains the principal trigger for relapse and mortality across diverse cancer types. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), which originate from the primary tumor or its metastatic sites, traverse the vascular system, serving as precursors in cancer recurrence and metastasis. Nevertheless, before CTCs can establish themselves in the distant parenchyma, they must overcome significant challenges present within the circulatory system, including hydrodynamic shear stress (HSS), oxidative damage, anoikis, and immune surveillance. Recently, there has been a growing body of compelling evidence suggesting that a specific subset of CTCs can persist within the bloodstream, but the precise mechanisms of their survival remain largely elusive. This review aims to present an outline of the survival challenges encountered by CTCs and to summarize the recent advancements in understanding the underlying survival mechanisms, suggesting their implications for cancer treatment.

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Acknowledgements

Figures were created with FigDraw (www.figdraw.com).

Funding

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82073059, 82103364); the Sichuan Science and Technology Program (2022YFS0204); the Post-doctor Research Project, West China Hospital (2023HXBH127).

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Author notes

  1. Shuang Zhou and Huanji Xu contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Abdominal Cancer, Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center and Laboratory of Molecular Targeted Therapy in Oncology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610041, China

    Shuang Zhou, Huanji Xu, Yichun Duan, Qiulin Tang, Huixi Huang & Feng Bi

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  1. Shuang Zhou
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  2. Huanji Xu
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  3. Yichun Duan
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Contributions

F.B made contributions to the conception and design. S.Z and H.X wrote the manuscript. Y.D and H.H completed the figures. Q.T helped to revise the manuscript. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

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Correspondence to Feng Bi.

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Zhou, S., Xu, H., Duan, Y. et al. Survival mechanisms of circulating tumor cells and their implications for cancer treatment. Cancer Metastasis Rev (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10555-024-10178-7

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