The metastatic signature of patient A suggests her tumor is not invasive and tha
ID: 260291 • Letter: T
Question
The metastatic signature of patient A suggests her tumor is not invasive and that she has a good prognosis. In contrast, Patient B has a tumor with a metastatic signature that indicates a poor prognosis. Aggressive levels of either chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy will be necessary to treat her tumor.
A. List and describe the activities of two factors that would contribute to the poor metastatic signature of patient B. (10 pts.)
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B. List two factors (not described in A, above) whose presence (or absence) contribute to the good metastatic signature of patient A. (10 pts.)
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Explanation / Answer
A -Factors thay would contribute to the poor metaststic signature of patient B :
Metastasis can be viewed as an evolutionary process, culminating in the prevalence of rare tumour cells that overcame stringent physiological barriers as they separated from their original environment and developmental fate.
This phenomenon brings into focus long-standing questions about the stage at which cancer cells acquire metastatic abilities, the relationship of metastatic cells to their tumour of origin, the basis for metastatic tissue tropism, the nature of metastasis predisposition factors and, importantly, the identity of genes that mediate these processes.
With knowledge cemented in decades of research into tumour-initiating events, current experimental and conceptual models are beginning to address the genetic basis for cancer colonization of distant organs.
B - factors to the good metastatic signature of patient A :
Most cancer deaths are due to the development of metastases, hence the most important improvements in morbidity and mortality will result from prevention (or elimination) of such disseminated disease.
Some would argue that treatments directed against metastasis are too late because cells have already escaped from the primary tumour.
Such an assertion runs contrary to the significant but (for many common adult cancers) fairly modest improvements in survival following the use of adjuvant radiation and chemotherapy designed to eliminate disseminated cells after surgical removal of the primary tumour.
Nonetheless, the debate raises important issues concerning the accurate early identification of clonogenic, metastatic cells, the discovery of novel, tractable targets for therapy, and the monitoring of minimal residual diseas
Intrinsic and extrinsic molecular mechanisms controlling metastasis that determine how, when, and where cancers metastasise, and their implications for patient management.