Patel Shanaya Saurin, Shah Kanisha Atul, Shah Manoj Jashwantbhai, Kothari Kiran Champaklal, Rawal Rakesh Mahesh
The Gujarat Cancer and Research Institute, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India E-mail :
Asian Pac J Cancer Prev. 2014;15(20):8549-56. doi: 10.7314/apjcp.2014.15.20.8549.
Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is one of the world top ten most common cancers with its highest occurrence in the Indian subcontinent and different aggressive and etiological behavioural patterns. The scenario is only getting worst with the 5 year survival rates dropping to 50%, persistent treatment failures and frequent cases of relapse/recurrence. One of the major reasons for these failures is the presence of cancer stem cells (CSCs), a small population of cancer cells that are highly tumourigenic, capable of self-renewal and have the ability to differentiate into cells that constitute the bulk of tumours. Notably, recent evidence suggests that cancer stem cells are especially resistant to conventional therapy and are the "drivers" of local recurrence and metastatic spread. Specific markers for this population have been investigated in HNSCC in the hope of developing a deeper understanding of their role in oral cancer pathogenesis, elucidating novel biomarkers for early diagnosis and newer therapeutic strategies. This review covers the fundamental relevance of almost all the CSC biomarkers established to date with a special emphasis on their impact in the process of oral tumourigenesis and their potential role in improving the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of OSCC patients.
头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）是全球十大最常见癌症之一，在印度次大陆发病率最高，且具有不同的侵袭性和病因行为模式。随着5年生存率降至50%、持续的治疗失败以及频繁的复发/再发病例，情况正变得越来越糟。这些失败的主要原因之一是癌症干细胞（CSC）的存在，这是一小部分具有高度致瘤性、能够自我更新且有能力分化为构成肿瘤主体的细胞的癌细胞。值得注意的是，最近的证据表明，癌症干细胞对传统疗法具有特别的抗性，并且是局部复发和转移扩散的“驱动因素”。针对这一细胞群体的特异性标志物已在HNSCC中进行了研究，以期更深入地了解它们在口腔癌发病机制中的作用，阐明早期诊断的新型生物标志物和更新的治疗策略。本综述涵盖了迄今为止几乎所有已确立的CSC生物标志物的基本相关性，特别强调了它们在口腔肿瘤发生过程中的影响以及它们在改善口腔鳞状细胞癌患者诊断、预后和治疗方面的潜在作用。
