Connective tissue growth factor produced by cancer‑associated fibroblasts correlates with poor prognosis in epithelioid malignant pleural mesothelioma.

ABSTRACT: Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive neoplasm for which effective treatments are lacking. We often encounter mesothelioma cases with a profound desmoplastic reaction, suggesting the involvement of cancer‑associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in mesothelioma progression. While the roles of CAFs have been extensively studied in other tumors and have led to the view that the cancer stroma contains heterogeneous populations of CAFs, their roles in mesothelioma remain unknown. We previously showed that connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), a secreted protein, is produced by both mesothelioma cells and fibroblasts and promotes the invasion of mesothelioma cells in vitro. In this study, we examined the clinical relevance of CAFs in mesothelioma. Using surgical specimens of epithelioid malignant pleu

SUBMITTER: Ohara Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7388423 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature