Unveiling the role of tumor reactive stroma in cholangiocarcinoma: an opportunity for new therapeutic strategies.

ABSTRACT: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a very aggressive neoplasm, whose incidence has steadily increased in the last decade. Despite its growing epidemiological impact, therapeutic chances with a curative intent are still limited to surgical resection and, in highly selected cases, to liver transplantation. Unfortunately, in most cases at the time of diagnosis, CCA has already metastasized to regional lymph nodes, thereby reducing the opportunities for curative treatment. Mechanisms governing CCA invasiveness are unclear. A critical element of CCA is the abundant "tumor reactive stroma", which develops in close association with tumor growth. An abundant reactive stroma is present in a number of carcinomas characterized by strong invasiveness, namely gastric, colorectal and pancreatic cancers, as wel

SUBMITTER: Cadamuro M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5627657 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature