Loeb Lawrence A, Loeb Keith R, Anderson Jon P
Joseph Gottstein Memorial Cancer Research Laboratory, Department of Pathology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195-7705, USA.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Feb 4;100(3):776-81. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0334858100. Epub 2003 Jan 27.
Most human tumors are highly heterogenous. We have hypothesized that this heterogeneity results from a mutator phenotype. Our premise is that normal mutation rates are insufficient to account for the multiple mutations found in human cancers, and, instead, that cancers must exhibit a mutator phenotype early during their evolution. Here, we examine the current status and implications of the mutator phenotype hypothesis for the prognosis, treatment, and prevention of human cancers.
大多数人类肿瘤具有高度异质性。我们推测这种异质性源于突变体表型。我们的前提是,正常的突变率不足以解释人类癌症中发现的多种突变,相反,癌症在其发展早期必定表现出突变体表型。在此,我们探讨突变体表型假说对于人类癌症预后、治疗和预防的现状及意义。