Natural Killer Cell Regulation of Breast Cancer Stem Cells Mediates Metastatic Dormancy.

ABSTRACT: Patients with breast cancer with estrogen receptor-positive tumors face a constant risk of disease recurrence for the remainder of their lives. Dormant tumor cells residing in tissues such as the bone marrow may generate clinically significant metastases many years after initial diagnosis. Previous studies suggest that dormant cancer cells display "stem-like" properties (cancer stem cell, CSC), which may be regulated by the immune system. To elucidate the role of the immune system in controlling dormancy and its escape, we studied dormancy in immunocompetent, syngeneic mouse breast cancer models. Three mouse breast cancer cell lines, PyMT, Met1, and D2.0R, contained CSCs that displayed short- and long-term metastatic dormancy in vivo, which was dependent on the host immune system. Each mod

SUBMITTER: Bushnell GG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11474167 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature