Bladder cancer subtypes exhibit limited plasticity across different microenvironments and in metastases.

ABSTRACT: Transcriptomic and genomic analyses of bladder cancer (BC) reveal a highly diverse disease stratified into molecular subtypes with distinct molecular features and biological behaviors. Intratumor heterogeneity (ITH) and plasticity can significantly impact diagnosis and patient management, yet their extent in BC remains highly debated. Here, we investigated whether the three main bladder cancer subtypes maintain or alter their identity in response to changes in the microenvironment and during metastatic colonization. Seven patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models representing the major BC subtypes were propagated into three distinct tissue microenvironments: subcutaneous, mammary fat pad and under the kidney capsule. Metastatic lesions were generated via systemic injection of tumor cells. Tum

SUBMITTER: Bernardo C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12225047 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature