Wang Jean C Y, Dick John E
Division of Cell and Molecular Biology, University Health Network, and Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics, University of Toronto, 620 University Ave, Toronto, Ontario, M5G 2C1, Canada.
Trends Cell Biol. 2005 Sep;15(9):494-501. doi: 10.1016/j.tcb.2005.07.004.
A fundamental problem in cancer research is identification of the cell type capable of initiating and sustaining growth of the tumor--the cancer stem cell (CSC). While the existence of CSCs was first proposed over 40 years ago, only in the past decade have these cells been identified and characterized in hematological malignancies. Recent studies have now described CSCs in solid tumors of the breast and brain, raising the possibility that such cells are at the apex of all neoplastic systems. An appreciation of the biological distinctness of CSCs is crucial not only for the design of studies to understand how tumorigenic pathways operate but also for the development of specific therapies that effectively target these cells in patients.
癌症研究中的一个基本问题是识别能够启动并维持肿瘤生长的细胞类型——癌症干细胞（CSC）。虽然早在40多年前就首次提出了癌症干细胞的存在，但直到过去十年，这些细胞才在血液系统恶性肿瘤中得到识别和表征。最近的研究现已描述了乳腺癌和脑实体瘤中的癌症干细胞，这增加了此类细胞处于所有肿瘤系统顶端的可能性。认识到癌症干细胞在生物学上的独特性不仅对于设计研究以了解致瘤途径如何运作至关重要，而且对于开发能有效靶向患者体内这些细胞的特异性疗法也至关重要。
