The Hallmarks Of Metastasis
Most people who die of cancer, die of metastasis. Approximately 90% of cancer deaths are from metastasis. It’s essentially when a tumor cell leaves the place it originally started, goes to another tissue, and builds a new colony. It’s an incredibly complex process, but two experts in the field have recently published work that brings the problem of metastasis into focus. Danny Welch, Professor and Associate Director of Education at The University of Kansas Cancer Center, and Doug Hurst, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, scoured the scientific literature—reviewing more than 10,000 publications—and defined the hallmarks of metastasis: 1. Motility and invasion 2. Modulation of the microenvironment 3. Plasticity/adaptability 4. The ability to colonize In this conversation they explained each of the hallmarks and what it all means for cancer patients.