Ahmad A, Hart I R
Richard Dimbleby Department of Cancer Research/ICRF Laboratory, Rayne Institute, UMDS, St. Thomas' Hospital, London, UK.
Crit Rev Oncol Hematol. 1997 Dec;26(3):163-73. doi: 10.1016/s1040-8428(97)10002-6.
The metastatic spread of solid tumours is responsible directly or indirectly for most cancer-related deaths. Our understanding of the molecular genetic and biological events that contribute to tumor cell dissemination has increased considerably over the last decade. It is clear that close anatomic and temporal co-operation between cellular adhesion molecules, extracellular matrix (ECM)-degrading proteases and peptides inducing tumour vascularisation are essential components of the metastatic behaviour of cancer cells. Although this enhanced understanding may have little immediate impact on patient survival (about 50% of patients have established metastatic disease at first presentation), it has led to the development of novel anti-metastatic therapies targeting distinct molecules and steps in the metastatic cascade. Here we review the role of matrix-degrading enzymes, changes in cellular adhesive capacity and tumour angiogenesis during cancer spread, highlighting areas that are of emerging importance in the clinic.
实体瘤的转移扩散直接或间接导致了大多数与癌症相关的死亡。在过去十年中，我们对促成肿瘤细胞播散的分子遗传学和生物学事件的理解有了显著增加。很明显，细胞粘附分子、细胞外基质（ECM）降解蛋白酶和诱导肿瘤血管生成的肽之间在解剖学和时间上的密切协作是癌细胞转移行为的重要组成部分。尽管这种深入的理解可能对患者生存率没有直接的即时影响（约50%的患者在初次就诊时就已出现转移性疾病），但它已促使开发出针对转移级联中不同分子和步骤的新型抗转移疗法。在此，我们综述基质降解酶、细胞粘附能力变化以及肿瘤血管生成在癌症扩散过程中的作用，重点介绍在临床上日益重要的领域。
