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This book comprehensively reviews the role of cancer stem cells (CSCs) in cancer initiation, progression, and resistance to anticancer therapies. The initial chapters examine the methods and procedure of the detection, isolation, and characterization of CSCs. It also introduces various epigenetic pathways that contribute to cancer initiation and tumorigenesis, particularly regarding the maintenance and survival of CSCs. It also explores the role of CSCs metabolism and the mechanisms of metabolic plasticity of CSCs in cancer biology. Further, it also presents the implications of CSCs on the origin of tumor heterogeneity and on heterogeneity of the therapeutic response. Towards the end, this book highlights the different immunotherapeutic approaches targeting CSCs with the potential of strongly improving cancer outcomes. This book offers a broad framework to scientists and clinicians into the state-of-the-art knowledge on cancer stem cell biology and highlights their therapeutic implications. ​

Why do we get cancer? Is it our modern diets and unhealthy habits? Chemicals in the environment? An unwelcome genetic inheritance? Or is it just bad luck? The answer is all of these and none of them. We get cancer because we can't avoid it—it's a bug in the system of life itself. Cancer exists in nearly every animal and has afflicted humans as long as our species has walked the earth. In Rebel Cell: Cancer, Evolution, and the New Science of Life's Oldest Betrayal, Kat Arney reveals the secrets of our most formidable medical enemy, most notably the fact that it isn't so much a foreign invader as a double agent: cancer is hardwired into the fundamental processes of life. New evidence shows that this disease is the result of the same evolutionary changes that allowed us to thrive. Evolution helped us outsmart our environment, and it helps cancer outsmart its environment as well—alas, that environment is us. Explaining why'everything we know about cancer is wrong,'Arney, a geneticist and award-winning science writer, guides readers with her trademark wit and clarity through the latest research into the cellular mavericks that rebel against the rigid biological'society'of the body and make a leap towards anarchy. We need to be a lot smarter to defeat such a wily foe—smarter even than Darwin himself. In this new world, where we know that every cancer is unique and can evolve its way out of trouble, the old models of treatment have reached their limits. But we are starting to decipher cancer's secret evolutionary playbook, mapping the landscapes in which these rogue cells survive, thrive, or die, and using this knowledge to predict and confound cancer's next move. Rebel Cell is a story about life and death, hope and hubris, nature and nurture. It's about a new way of thinking about what this disease really is and the role it plays in human life. Above all, it's a story about where cancer came from, where it's going, and how we can stop it.

A fundamental and groundbreaking reassessment of how we view and manage cancer When we think of the forces driving cancer, we don't necessarily think of evolution. But evolution and cancer are closely linked because the historical processes that created life also created cancer. The Cheating Cell delves into this extraordinary relationship, and shows that by understanding cancer's evolutionary origins, researchers can come up with more effective, revolutionary treatments.Athena Aktipis goes back billions of years to explore when unicellular forms became multicellular organisms. Within these bodies of cooperating cells, cheating ones arose, overusing resources and replicating out of control, giving rise to cancer. Aktipis illustrates how evolution has paved the way for cancer's ubiquity, and why it will exist as long as multicellular life does. Even so, she argues, this doesn't mean we should give up on treating cancer—in fact, evolutionary approaches offer new and promising options for the disease's prevention and treatments that aim at long-term management rather than simple eradication. Looking across species—from sponges and cacti to dogs and elephants—we are discovering new mechanisms of tumor suppression and the many ways that multicellular life-forms have evolved to keep cancer under control. By accepting that cancer is a part of our biological past, present, and future—and that we cannot win a war against evolution—treatments can become smarter, more strategic, and more humane.Unifying the latest research from biology, ecology, medicine, and social science, The Cheating Cell challenges us to rethink cancer's fundamental nature and our relationship to it.

The questions we ask in this book about cancer are actually quite elementary. What is the origin of cancer? Does cancer arise in any cell in the body, or only in certain cells? Is cancer a genetic or a stem-cell disease? We illustrate that cancer is a multicellular rather than a unicellular process, a cellular rather than a genetic problem, and a stem-cell rather than a somatic-cell disease. We reveal that the incredible resemblance between a cancer cell and a stem cell suggests that they are intimately related. The uncanny ingenuity of a cancer cell is also innate in a stem cell. The recognition that cancer has a stem-cell origin indicates that a stem-cell theory of cancer may be the unified theory that we need to make sense of the torrents of new data and new insights into different facets of cancer, to see how they fit together into one picture, and to disarm the disease. A stem-cell theory of cancer can potentially accept, embrace, and integrate all of its genetic, epigenetic, proteomic, and metabolic aspects. Such a unified theory can account for all cancer hallmarks, including metastasis, heterogeneity, dormancy, and immune evasion. It predicts that multimodal therapy may be more beneficial than targeted therapy, and integrated medicine more effective than precision medicine for the management of all but the simplest tumors. It predicts that when we have the correct cancer theory, clinical progress will advance by monumental leaps rather than incremental steps. Indeed, I predict that successful clinical outcomes will ultimately provide irrefutable validation that cancer is a stem-cell disease. Therefore, the thesis of this book is actually quite simple. When we have a pertinent and correct theory of the origin of cancer, all ideas, observations, experiments, and treatments will begin to fall into place and make perfect sense. We would like to convince readers that a stem-cell theory is the elusive, long-sought unified theory, the theory of all theories, of cancer.

The 3O2 generated by the photolysis process will accept enough energy from triplet-chlorophyll to provide the energy states of a singlet of oxygen (1O2), 1Δg, and 1Σg+, with emissions in the range of 200 – 500 µm. The 1O2 would react with unsaturated fatty acids to form malondialdehyde (MDA). In humans, the methylation of CpG islands in cancerous cells is so high that the sensing ability of the occurrence of environmental changes to genes with CpG islands could be insufficient for genes with CpG islands. House-keeping genes function independently by sensing various types of information from neighboring cells, and supporting the proliferation of cells behaving as cancerous cells so that the cells achieve a malignant, metastatic state. The CpG island-controlled genes (47,000/human haploid genome) and CpG island-independent genes (33,000/human haploid genome) co-regulate in the normal cell systems. FAD, FMN, riboflavin, and derivatives of heme groups are well known as photosensitizers, which emit 1O2 with ROS in the solution in vivo. In sunlight, photosensitizers will function as the generators of 1O2 and ROS. During the daytime, there is a plentiful supply of 1O2 and ROS from the sunlight, and which inevitably constitutes the circadian rhythms of ROS. The repeated evolution of 1O2 and ROS would function to stimulate the methylation of CpG islands. The tubulin structures, extending from the plasma membrane to two centrosomes and located along the sides of the nucleus, are designated as asters. In darkness, the protein complex of NDPK-1/catalase is located in the plasma membrane. However, upon receiving light illumination, the NDPK-1/catalase function captures 1O2 using catalase. The NDPK-1 binds NADH and supplies electrons to bind 1O2 that is bound to the catalase, resulting in the release of a super oxide (O2.-). The NDPK/catalase protein complex located in the plasma membrane moves along the aster-forming tubulin structure to the cytosol. As a result, the nucleus is protected from 1O2 by the wall, which is composed of the NDPK-1/catalase complex.

First Published in 1988, this book offers a full, comprehensive guide into the relationship between macrophages and Cancer. Carefully compiled and filled with a vast repertoire of notes and references this book serves as a useful reference for Students of Medicine, Oncology and other practitioners in their respective fields.

The study of the biology of tumours has grown to become markedly interdisciplinary, involving chemists, statisticians, epidemiologists, mathematicians, bioinformaticians, and computer scientists alongside biologists, geneticists, and clinicians. The Oxford Textbook of Cancer Biology brings together the most up-to-date developments from different branches of research into one coherent volume, providing a comprehensive and current account of this rapidly evolving field. Structured in eight sections, the book starts with a review of the development and biology of multi-cellular organisms, how they maintain a healthy homeostasis in an individual, and a description of the molecular basis of cancer development. The book then illustrates, as once cells become neoplastic, their signalling network is altered and pathological behaviour follows. It explores the changes that cancer cells can induce in nearby normal tissue, the new relationship established between them and the stroma, and the interaction between the immune system and tumour growth. The authors illustrate the contribution provided by high throughput techniques to map cancer at different levels, from genomic sequencing to cellular metabolic functions, and how information technology, with its vast amounts of data, is integrated with traditional cell biology to provide a global view of the disease. The effect of the different types of treatments on the biology of the neoplastic cells are explored to understand on the one side, why some treatments succeed, and on the other, how they can affect the biology of resistant and recurrent disease. The book concludes by summarizing what we know to date about cancer, and in what direction our understanding of cancer is moving. Edited by leading authorities in the field with an international team of contributors, this book is an essential resource for scholars and professionals working in the wide variety of sub-disciplines that make up today's cancer research and treatment community. It is written not only for consultation, but also for easy cover-to-cover reading.

First Published in 1979, this book offers a full, comprehensive guide into the potential application of immune and tumor cells. Carefully compiled and filled with a vast repertoire of notes, diagrams, and references this book serves as a useful reference for students of oncology, and other practitioners in their respective fields.

Cancer cell biology research in general, and anti-cancer drug development specifically, still relies on standard cell culture techniques that place the cells in an unnatural environment. As a consequence, growing tumor cells in plastic dishes places a selective pressure that substantially alters their original molecular and phenotypic properties.The emerging field of regenerative medicine has developed bioengineered tissue platforms that can better mimic the structure and cellular heterogeneity of in vivo tissue, and are suitable for tumor bioengineering research. Microengineering technologies have resulted in advanced methods for creating and culturing 3-D human tissue. By encapsulating the respective cell type or combining several cell types to form tissues, these model organs can be viable for longer periods of time and are cultured to develop functional properties similar to native tissues. This approach recapitulates the dynamic role of cell–cell, cell–ECM, and mechanical interactions inside the tumor. Further incorporation of cells representative of the tumor stroma, such as endothelial cells (EC) and tumor fibroblasts, can mimic the in vivo tumor microenvironment. Collectively, bioengineered tumors create an important resource for the in vitro study of tumor growth in 3D including tumor biomechanics and the effects of anti-cancer drugs on 3D tumor tissue. These technologies have the potential to overcome current limitations to genetic and histological tumor classification and development of personalized therapies.

Cancer is a multifaceted disease and overwhelmingly increasing experimental evidence has helped us to develop a deeper understanding of the role of signal transduction cascades in cancer development and progression. Tissue microarrays and next generation sequencing technologies have assisted us to gather missing pieces of jigsaw puzzle and we now know that deregulation of spatio-temporally controlled signaling cascades play fundamental role in metastasis and resistance against wide ranging therapeutics.This book offers a balanced overview of the rapidly emerging cutting edge research in molecular oncology and good source of knowledge for established oncologists, basic and medical students and pharmaceutical industry associated R&D departments.

This book will focus on DNA and histone methylation in epigenetics and describe how it is involved in the molecular mechanisms responsible for the development of cancer. Chapters will summarize the current knowledge of the molecular basis of DNA and histone methylation and explain how it is involved in cancer, describe the features of DNA and histone methylation associated with particular types of cancer, diagnostic/therapeutic applications, and future directions of DNA and histone methylation as cancer targets.

This book describes the structures of Metallothionein (MT) family members and the cellular functions of MT-1, MT-2 and MT-4 isoforms, as well as provides insights into divergent biological roles of MT-3. The authors explain the involvement of MT molecules in various processes related to carcinogenesis, including an organ-specific presentation of current data concerning their potential impact on the progression of various tumors and the regulatory role of MT family members in the function of the immune system.

This volume will introduce new terminology to the field of oncology, subdividing it into oncokinetics—the mechanics of the tumor cells as they arise and spread throughout the body—and oncodynamics—the impact of abnormal cues generated by tumors on the physiological functioning of the body. The volume will outline the importance of oncodynamics from both a cancer patient's and a caregiver's perspectives, stressing its significant impact on cancer patient functionality and the opportunity that cancer researchers will have to develop cross-disciplinary interactions and predict potential consequences of tumors and/or treatment.

An innovative theory proposes a new therapeutic strategy to break the stalemate in the war on cancer. It is called cancer stem cell (CSC) theory, and Lucie Laplane offers a comprehensive analysis, based on an original interdisciplinary approach that combines biology, biomedical history, and philosophy.Rather than treat cancer by aggressively trying to eliminate all cancerous cells—with harmful side effects for patients—CSC theory suggests the possibility of targeting the CSCs, a small fraction of cells that lie at the root of cancers. CSCs are cancer cells that also have the defining properties of stem cells—the abilities to self-renew and to differentiate. According to this theory, only CSCs and no other cancer cells can induce tumor formation.To date, researchers have not agreed on the defining feature of CSCs—their stemness. Drawing from a philosophical perspective, Laplane shows that there are four possible ways to understand this property: stemness can be categorical (an intrinsic property of stem cells), dispositional (an intrinsic property whose expression depends on external stimuli), relational (an extrinsic property determined by a cell's relationship with the microenvironment), or systemic (an extrinsic property controlled at the system level). Our ability to cure cancers may well depend upon determining how these definitions apply to different types of cancers.

Cancer Stem Cells: Targeting the Roots of Cancer, Seeds of Metastasis, and Sources of Therapy Resistance introduces the basic concepts and advanced understanding of cancer stem cells, covering general overviews, organ-specific identifications, and their characteristic mechanisms. The book also explores innovative therapeutic strategies in preclinical and clinical trials to target cancer stem cells, remove the roots of cancer, eliminate the seeds of metastasis, overcome the resistance of therapies, and contribute to the eradication of cancer. The book includes contributions from leading, worldwide experts in the field, helping readers embrace new hope in their quest to eradicate cancer with emerging clinical trials on treating cancer stem cells in combination with other therapies. - Provides an authoritative and complete overview of cancer stem cells - Includes comprehensive coverage of current therapeutic strategies targeting cancer stem cells - Deepens a reader's technical expertise in cancer stem cell biology

This volume will detail the current state and perspectives of autophagy-based cancer therapy. Covering a wide range of topics, it will include an overview of autophagy as a therapeutic target in cancer, autophagy modulators as cancer therapeutic agents, implications of micro-RNA-regulated autophagy in cancer therapy, modulation of autophagy through targeting PI3 kinase in cancer therapy, targeting autophagy in cancer stem cells, and roles of autophagy in cancer immunotherapy. In addition, the volume will review applications of system biology and bioinformatics approaches to discovering cancer therapeutic targets in the autophagy regulatory network. The volume will be beneficial for a variety of basic and clinical scientists, including cancer biologists, autophagy researchers, pharmacologists, and clinical oncologists who wish to delve more deeply into this field of cancer research.This volume will be the first book to focus solely on autophagy as a target in cancer therapy. As well, it will comprehensively discuss the roles of autophagy in most currently available cancer treatments.

This interdisciplinary thesis introduces a systems biology approach to study the cell fate decision mediated by autophagy. A mathematical model of interaction between Autophagy and Apoptosis in mammalian cells is proposed. In this dynamic model autophagy acts as a gradual response to stress (Rheostat) that delays the initiation of bistable switch of apoptosis to give the cells an opportunity to survive. The author shows that his dynamical model is consistent with existing quantitative measurements of time courses of autophagic responses to cisplatin treatment. To understand the function of this response in cancer cells, he has provided a systems biology experimental framework to study quantitative and dynamical aspects of autophagy in single cancer cells using live-cell imaging and quantitative fluorescence microscopy. This framework can provide new insights on function of autophagic response in cancer cells.

This volume thoroughly examines breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs), from basic definitions to techniques for identifying, isolating, culturing, and targeting BCSCs for therapy; there is additional focus on pre-clinical and clinical results. The text begins with a discussion of breast cancer, focusing especially on the limitations of current therapies in its treatment. The subsequent chapters introduce and compare stem cells and cancer stem cells, describe properties and isolation techniques of BCSCs, and examine BCSC-targeting approaches. The text concludes with a discussion of controversy surrounding the BCSC hypothesis and of future research directions. Breast Cancer Stem Cells & Therapy Resistance, part of the SpringerBriefs in Stem Cells series, provides a succinct yet comprehensive overview of BCSCs for advanced students, graduate students and researchers as well as those working with breast cancer or stem cells in a clinical setting.

This work provides a state-of-the art overview on the most relevant aspects of cell polarity.Volume 2 discusses the physiological and pathophysiological relevance of cell polarity. It especially focuses on pathophysiological conditions in which one or several aspects of cell polarity are impaired, and in which a loss of cell polarity possibly contributes to disease (e.g. epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in cancer, role of polarity proteins in cancer). Both volumes are intended for professors, group leaders and researchers in cell biology as well as for medical professionals working in anatomy, cell biology, physiology, pathology and tumor biology.

This issue of Recent Results in Cancer Research presents a comprehensive review of current understanding of chromosomal instability in cancer and of strategies to use this information for better treatment of patients with cancer. Cancer is a disease of the chromosomes, and chromosomal instability in cancer disrupts gene function by either inactivating tumor suppressor genes or activating growth-promoting oncogenes. The chromosomal basis for these aberrations is either translocations, which change the integrity of genes, or abnormal numbers of chromosomes, a condition referred to as aneuploidy, which results in abnormal gene expression levels. Such structural or numerical chromosomal aberrations are specific for distinct tumor entities. The degree of chromosomal instability and the degree of intratumor heterogeneity have profound consequences for disease outcome and for therapeutic stratification.

The four sections of this book cover cell and molecular biology of tumor metabolism, metabolites, tumor microenvironment, diagnostics and epigenetics. Written by international experts, it provides a thorough insight into and understanding of tumor cell metabolism and its role in tumor biology. The book is intended for scientists in cancer cell and molecular biology, scientists in drug and diagnostic development, as well as for clinicians and oncologists.

Cells are by nature compelled to live in groups. They develop dependence over signaling cues received from their microenvironment, in particular from other cells, whether of their own “kind” or of a different type. Therefore, communicating with these cells is a critical aspect of their behavior and fate, as they live and die normally or as they undergo disease-related pathological changes, with dramatic repercussions.In this book, we have asked expert researchers in the field of Intercellular Communication in Cancer to provide chapters on different aspects of interaction between neighboring cells, in the context of cancer diseases. We have specifically focused our efforts on membrane-to-membrane contact-based rather than growth factors-mediated modes of intercellular communications.The contributing authors provide an extensive overview of their respective area of specialization, with an in-depth discussion of the molecular mechanisms of cell-cell interactions, the impact on tumor progression and response to therapies, as well as the cancer diagnostic value of this scientific information.This book aims to introduce essential aspects of the normal and pathological cellular fate and homeostasis to both scientists and clinicians, and also to provide established researchers with an update on the novelties and future directions this expanding field is witnessing.

This is the thirteenth volume in a series which presents current understanding of stem cells and cancer stem cells. This book presents many relevant topics including the different sources of cancer stem cells: the features, roles and clinical potential of stem cells emerge from engaging with this comprehensive work. Chapters explore molecular mechanisms underlying human somatic cell reprogramming to generate induced pluripotent stem cells and provide expert discussion of the advantages and limitations of applications of some of the stem cell types (pluripotent stem cells, neural stem cells). Many advances are explored, including the importance of stem cell markers in diagnosis, the role of stem cells in angiogenesis and a method for isolating multi potent endothelial-like cells from human adipose tissue, to name a few. Readers will also find a consideration of mathematical models and other quantitative tools which could facilitate research and discovery in the field. The editor's preface to the book and the series is particularly helpful in introducing the work presented in this volume. The detailed overviews, practical experience and insights of international expert authors presented in this handbook will be of value to both professional practitioners and scholars in basic research.

This work provides a state-of-the art overview on the most relevant aspects of cell polarity.Volume 1 addresses cell polarity and cell migration (front-rear polarity), cell polarity and barrier formation (apico-basal polarity) and neuronal polarity. It particularly focuses on cell polarity at the molecular level and the underlying molecular mechanisms. It also elaborates the common principles and mechanisms that regulate cellular polarization in different cell types and contexts.Both volumes are intended for professors, group leaders and researchers in cell biology as well as medical professionals in the fields of anatomy, cell biology, physiology, pathology and tumor biology.

This book explores the role of cancer stem cells in the diagnosis, treatment, and cure of cancers. This book also tackles novel methodology for cancer stem cell marker identification, cancer stem cell respiration and metabolism, genetic and epigenetic mechanisms including DNA methylation, and mi-RNA assemble. It also emphasizes the role of Bioinformatics techniques, which provide a novel methodology for modeling cancer outcomes. The authors investigate the difference between cancer stem cells and normal stem cells, along with the concept of targeted cancer stem cell therapy. Although the theoretical explanations of cancer stem cell involvement in leukemia and solid cancers are controversial, there is now little doubt that cancer stem cells exist within otherwise heterogeneous cancer cell population. The brief examines the two leading theories, hierarchical and the stochastic/cancer stem cell model. Researchers, professors and advanced-level students focused on bioengineering and computer science will find this book to be a valuable resource. It is a very good source of critical references for understanding of this problem, and a useful tool for professionals in related fields.

This title includes a number of Open Access chapters.Cell signaling is a field that studies how cells communicate to control basic activities and respond to their environment. When looking specifically at cancer cells, researchers can gain a better understanding of cancer on a cellular level, an understanding that may have implications for developi

​​​The imbalance between rapidly proliferating tumor cells and inadequate and inefficient tumor vasculature leads to a decrease in oxygen levels (hypoxia and/or anoxia) in tumor tissues. Intra-tumor hypoxia profoundly affects the biological behavior of cancer cells, which become resistant to conventional therapies and acquire a more invasive and metastatic phenotype. Hypoxia is a hallmark of the malignant phenotype and a key feature of the tumor microenvironment. Hypoxia Inducible Factor 1 (HIF-1) is a master regulator of the transcriptional response to oxygen deprivation. HIF triggers the expression of genes whose products induce angiogenesis, decrease oxygen consumption, switch metabolism to glycolysis, maintain a stem cell phenotype and select for more invasive and metastatic cells. Therapeutic approaches targeting HIF, directly or downstream mediators of its transcriptional activity, are being developed. Intra-tumor hypoxia is a topic has been gaining scientific interest over the last few years for its wide involvement in many physiological and pathological processes. This volume will cover the latest research and translational aspects associated with intra-tumor hypoxia, along with opportunities for drug development offered by this unique feature of the tumor microenvironment. The ongoing efforts to translate our understanding of the biology underlying intra-tumor hypoxia in viable therapeutic options face many challenges, but this book will provide an opportunity for an in-depth analysis of the fundamental mechanisms implicated in the adaption to low oxygen levels and will scrutinize the potential for opportunities that are being pursued in both research and the drug development industry.

Volume 11 in this series discusses therapeutic applications of stem cells in disease and tissue injury. Coverage includes pluripotent stem cells, which can give rise to the endodermal, ectodermal, and mesodermal lineages; multipotent stem cells, which can generate all cells in a particular lineage and unipotent stem cells, which can give rise to only one cell type. This volume also examines cancer stem cells, tumor-initiating cells which possesses the capacity of self-renewal and can give rise to the heterogeneous lineages of cancer cells that comprise the tumor. Coverage extends to molecular mechanisms underlying the derivation and expansion of human embryonic stem cells, the role of specific proteins in the maintenance and inhibition of extraembryonic differentiation of these cells and the role of signaling responsible for the self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells. Nine chapters discuss the clinical importance of cancer stem cells, encompassing glioma, leukemia, ovarian cancer, pediatric sarcomas and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. The role of cancer stem cells is also elucidated in epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in spreading head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. The book goes on to survey therapeutic application of stem cells of hematopoietic and non-hematopoietic origin for regeneration of bones, including in osteoporotic bone disease; to illuminate the application of hematopoietic stem cells in bone regeneration and to discuss their use as a biomarker to facilitate determination of a treatment. The contributors review cells as biomarkers for pediatric solid tumors, and weigh the advantages and limitations of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Also included are details of neural stem cell engraftment in the injured spinal cord; the regenerative potential of neural stem/progenitor cells of newborns and cancer gene therapy potential using neural stem cells. Like the preceding volumes in the series, this book is distinguished for itscomprehensive approach, its distinguished roster of 58 contributors representing 10 different countries and its thorough review of leading-edge technology and methods.

The tumor environment is a dynamic network that includes cancer cells, immune cells, fibroblasts, endothelial cells, extracellular matrix, cytokines and receptors. The aim of this book is to summarize the role of these components, especially immune cells, in tumor suppression and/or progression and describe in detail why tumor cells can survive and spread in spite of the antitumor response of immune cells. Since immunotherapy is an attractive approach to cancer therapy, this book also provides information on the two main strategies: monoclonal antibodies and adaptive T cell immunotherapy, with a focus on recent human clinical trials. The book provides a state-of-the-art, comprehensive overview of immune cells in cancer and is an indispensable resource for scientists and medical doctors working and/or lecturing in the field of cancer research and immunology. ​

This volume explores the latest developments in a novel area of molecular biology and a hot topic in the field of oncology: cancer stem cells. These chapters from expert contributing authors present concepts such as the universal stem cell, new molecular pathways, new targeted agents, the different roles that cancer stem cells seem to have according to the organ they are placed in, and the future role that targeting cancer stem cells may have in the management of patients in the clinic.Exploring the latest research including new data from randomized trials, this book examines important proposals over the origin of cancer stem cells such as the possibility that cancer stem cells may arise from mutated stem cells or a fully differentiated cell that may undergo several mutations that drive it back to a stem-like state. The authors consider the role that stem cells seem to have in the onset, development and resistance to classical antitumoral treatments of cancer and discuss possible potential future treatment modalities for the management of advanced cancer patients.The question,'Are stem cells involved in cancer?'may not have a simple answer, but ongoing investigations, in-depth consideration and a broad spectrum of information can be found in this book, allowing the reader to arrive at his or her own answer.This book will appeal to researchers in the field of oncology and cancer research and biomedical scientists with an interest in stem cells.

'Nuclear envelope (NE) defects have been linked to cancer biology since the mid-1800s, but it was not until the last few years that we have begun to understand these historical links and to realize that there are myriad ways that the NE impacts on tumorigenesis. The NE is a complex double membrane system that encloses the genome while providing structural support through the intermediate filament lamin polymer and regulating protein/ mRNA trafficking and signaling between the nucleus and cytoplasm via the nuclear pore complexes (NPCs). These functions already provide some mechanisms for NE influences on cancer biology but work in the past few years has elucidated many others. Lamins and many recently identified NE transmembrane proteins (NETs) have been now shown to function in DNA repair, regulation of cell cycle and signaling, apoptosis, cell migration in metastasis and nuclear architecture and morphology. This volume presents a comprehensive overview of the wide range of functions recently identified for NE proteins and their relevance in cancer biology, providing molecular mechanisms and evidence of their value as prognostic and diagnostic markers and suggesting new avenues for the treatment of cancer. Indeed some of these recent links are already yielding promising therapies, such as the current clinical trial of selective inhibitors of the nuclear export factor exportin in certain types of leukemia, melanoma and kidney cancer.'

Volume 12 in this series explores the latest experimental and clinical uses of stem cells in the treatment of disease and of injuries and reviews methods for isolating multipotent endothelial-like cells from human adipose tissue and discusses clinical applications in cell therapy and regenerative medicine.The book is organized in five parts: Cancer Stem Cells, Pluripotent Stem Cells, Dendritic Stem Cells, Regenerative Medicine and General Applications. The first section includes chapters on histamine in the neural and cancer stem cell niches and emerging concepts of stem cell organization in the normal lung and in lung cancer. The section on Pluripotent Stem Cells includes discussion of the differentiation of dendritic cells from human induced pluripotent stem cell and the molecular mechanisms involved in reprogramming human somatic cells to generate induced pluripotent stem cells. Additional chapters cover the differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells into functional cardiomyocytes, characteristics of satellite cells and multipotent adult stem cells in the skeletal muscle. The section on Dendritic Stem Cells explores the critical role of notch signaling in the differentiation and function of dendrite. Other chapters cover hypertensive emergencies in children after stem cell transplantation and overcoming the radio resistance of lung cancer stem cells. The section on Regenerative Medicine reports on experiments on improved renal revascularization in pigs using stem cells and phenotypic correction of murine Hemophilia A using cell-based therapy. The concluding section, General Applications, discusses such topics as methods in mathematical modeling for stem cells, as well as molecular and functional characterization of human adipocytes.Like its eleven predecessors in the series, this volume stands out for its comprehensive approach, its roster of some 51 expert contributors representing a dozen different countries and its up-to-date review of leading-edge technology and methods.

Timing, racing, combating, struggling and targeting are some actions through which cellular fate could be reflected and evaluated. Interaction between cell territory and environment occur during pre-embryonic, fetal development, and post-natal periods. What the researchers observe as the outcome of telomeres behavior is only the peak of an ice mountain within a stormy ocean. Cellular life depends on programmed behavior of telomeres, capable to surprise the cells. Telomeres provide an introduction to the history of our cells which govern the quality of life and status of health. Telomeres as the cooperative territory are capable of stabilizing the chromosomal territory. The status of telomeres reflects the key information, announcing the real age of individuals, and may be a valuable marker for prognosis and predicting cancer. Telomere territory is characterized with a multi-disciplinary manner. Therefore, this book is aimed to offer a wide range of chapters, hoping to be useful for diverse audiences, including hematologists-oncologists, radiotherapists, surgeons, cancer researchers, and all the sectors who affect the macro- and micro- environmental domains. Finally, telomeres are sensitive, cooperative, and trustable targets. It is worth to state that ‘telomeres are messengers of NATURE', let's to know them as they are.

Presenting contributions by 66 experts representing 13 countries, Volume 10 of the series Stem Cells and Cancer Stem Cells synthesizes current understanding of the causes, diagnosis, and therapy of major human diseases and debilitating tissue and organ injuries, using cell-based treatment. This volume presents contemporary research into generation, preservation, and uses of stem cells in fighting disease and tissue/organ injuries.The contents of the volume are organized into five sections. Mesenchymal Stem Cells section includes chapters on the use of stem cells in bone regeneration, studies and trials of stem cells in autoimmune diseases, and differences between adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells and bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells as regulators of immune response. Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells section offers chapters on drug discovery using human IPSC-based disease models, and on generation of antigen-specific lymphocytes from IPSCs. Neural Cells and Neural Stem Cells section discusses use of bacterial artificial chromosomes in the genetic identification of stem cell-derived neural cell types, and use of moderate low temperature to preserve the stemness of neural stem cells. The section, Role of Stem Cells in Disease, discusses stem cell support in high-dose chemotherapy of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas; potential targets for drug resistant leukemic stem cells, bone marrow stem cell therapies for diabetes mellitus. This section also discusses the use of stem cells in treating thyroid, breast and bone cancers, hempophilia and Parkinson's Disease. The section, Stem Cell Transplantation, includes chapters on reducing fungal infection in allogenic stem cell transplantation patients, use of Bulsufan/Fludarabine for conditioning in haematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and interleukin-7 receptor alpha polymorphisms in allogeneic stem cell transplantation.The editor, M.A. Hayat, is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biological, Sciences at Kean University, Union, New Jersey, USA.

The existence of ‘cancer stem cells'(CSCs) has been a topic of heated debate for the last few years within the field of cancer biology. Their continuous characterization in a variety of solid tumors has lead to an abundance of evidence supporting their existence. CSCs are believed to be responsible for resistance against conventional treatment regimes of chemotherapy and radiation, ultimately, leading to metastasis and patient demise. To help aid clinicians, pharmaceutical companies and academic labs investigating how to better kill these highly aggressive cells we have summarized the DNA repair mechanism(s) and their role in the maintenance and regulation of both normal and cancer stem cells. Our book represents a comprehensive investigation into the highly effective DNA repair mechanisms of CSCs and what we need to understand in order to develop more advanced therapies to eradicate them from patients. Currently, there are no other published works entirely on DNA repair and Cancer Stem Cells. In addition, our book provides a comprehensive overview of CSC isolation and characterization from a variety of solid tumor types.

Endocytosis and vesicular trafficking determine the landscape of the cell's exterior, namely the density of surface molecules, such as receptors for growth factors and cytokines, adhesion molecules like integrins and cadherins, and a plethora of nutrient carriers. Hence, endocytosis is involved in signal transduction, cell adhesion and migration, as well as metabolism. To exploit these fundamental processes, malignancies subtly and multiply manipulate the endocytosis and the subsequent trafficking of protein cargoes. This is achieved by simultaneously altering the cytoskeleton, vesicle budding, cargo sorting and intracellular degradation. By highlighting the underlying molecular processes and concentrating on specific examples, this book reviews the recent emergence of derailed endocytosis and vesicular trafficking as a landmark of cancer. In-depth understanding of this common feature of tumors might lead the way to drug-induced strategies, able to rectify intracellular trafficking in cancer.

This fresh addition to the rapidly expanding Springer series on stem cells represents an additional forward step in our understanding of the causes, diagnosis, and cell-related therapies of major human diseases as well as debilitating injuries to human tissue and organs. Showcasing the work of more than 80 contributors from 13 nations, it offers an unrivalled breadth of differing perspectives on the subject, with dedicated sections covering umbilical cord, induced pluripotent, embryonic, and hematopoietic stem cells, in addition to stem cells in tumors and cancer, and the applications of stem cells in regenerative medicine. Enhanced by numerous color illustrations and tables that provide graphic clarification and summaries of key results, the volume succeeds in bringing together research results from oncologists, neurosurgeons, physicians, research scientists, and pathologists, whose accumulated wealth of practical experience will inform and inspire further developments in the vital and urgent work of cancer diagnosis, cure, and prevention.

As was shown in the first two volumes of this series, great strides have been made in identifying many of the agents or classes of substances responsible for carcinogenesis and in delineating their interactions with the cell. Clearly, the aim of such studies is that, once identified, these agents can be eliminated from the environment. Yet, despite these advances and the elimination of some important carcinogenic agents, one major problem exists. It is a constant monitor of all oncologic study and diminishes the importance of every experiment and of every clinical observation. As we noted earlier, that problem is our inability to define the malignant cell. It is through studies of the fundamental biology of tumors that we seek this definition. A vast amount of information has been gathered which describes what this cell does and-to a lesser extent-how it does it. But the why evades us. We have been unable to define the malignant cell, save in broad terms by comparing it to its normal counterpart. The major problem appears to be that the malignant cell does so much. It is a chimera, mystifyingly composed of normal activities and structures, of phenotypic schizophrenia with embryonic, fetal, and adult charac­ teristics and, occasionally, a hint of an unclassifiable capacity unique to malignant cells.

In multicellular organisms, communication between cells involves secretion of proteins that bind to receptors on neighboring cells. While this has been well documented, another mode of intercellular communication has recently become the subject of increasing interest: the release of exosomes. In cancer, tumor exosomes are involved in various aspects of pathogenesis, including proliferation, immunosuppression, and metastasis. Given the ability of exosomes to export unneeded endogenous molecules from cells, these structures hold great potential as anticancer therapeutic agents. They are also being studied as prognostic markers for cancer.

It is pointed out that cancer stem cell is a cell type within a tumor that possesses the capacity of cell-renewal and can give rise to the heterogeneous lineages of cancer cells that comprise the tumor. It is emphasized that a cancer stem cell is a tumor initiating cell. That conventional chemotherapy kills most cells in a tumor, but cancer stem cells remain intact is discussed. Vast applications of stem cells, cancer stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, and human pluripotent stem cells are discussed. Because human embryonic stem cells possess the potential of producing unlimited quantities of any human cell type, considerable focus is placed on their therapeutic potential in this volume. Because of the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells, this volume discusses various applications such as tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, pharmacological and toxicological uses. The role of these cells in cell differentiation is also included. The role of cancer stem cells of breast, colon, and melanoma tumors in response to antitumor therapy is detailed. The role of cancer stem cells, specifically in the deadliest brain cancer, glioblastoma multiforme, is explained. Transplantation of bone marrow-derived stem cells for myocardial infarcation and use of mesenchymal stem cells in orthopedics are described.

As in volume 1 of this series, this volume presents information on stem cells and cancer stem cells; Therapeutic Applications in disease and tissue/organ injury. Methodologies of regenerative medicine and tissue engineering are major components of this volume. Specific stem cells discussed are: human embryonic stem cells, hematopoietic stem cells, cord blood stem cells, human pluripotent stem cells, gliosarcoma stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells, intestinal stem cells, human thyroid cancer stem cells, tumor stem cells, menstrual stem-like cells, neural stem cells, breast cancer stem cells, allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells, fetal membrane-derived mesemchynmal stem cells, and omental stem cells. The method for isolating bone marrow stromal cells is explained. Method for generating marmoset-induced pluripotent stem cells, using transcription factors, is also explained. Use of stem cell lines in therapeutic applications is discussed. Programming of stem cells is described. Methods for transplantation of stem cells are presented. Use of various types of stem cells for conditions such as stroke, ischemia, heart diseases, Alzhemier's disease, and neurogenerative diseases in general, is explained. For example, generation of human cardiac muscle cells from adipose-derived stem cells is included. Another example is repairing bone defects using mesenchymal stem cells and mesenchymal-derived endothelial cells. Differentiation of new neurons from neural stem cells is described. Method for repairing retina condition using human embryonic stem cells is explained; these cells can induce neural differentiation. Treatment of graft-versus-host disease resulting from hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is elaborated.

Difference between tissue specific stem cells and embryonic stem cells is explained. The advantages of the latter are included. The application of human pluripotent stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, and hematopoietic stem cells in cancer therapy and tissue/organ regeneration is detailed. Role of neural cancer stem cells in brain tumors, including their role in brain tumor therapy and the role of CD133 stem cell antigen in glioma patients, is emphasized. Therapeutic role of bone marrow-derived stem cells in myocardial infarction and the role of mesenchymal stem cells in orthopedics are explained. Transplantation of umbilical cord hematopoietic stem cells and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation followed by graft-versus-host disease are presented. Role of cancer stem cells specifically in glioblastoma and medulloblastoma is included. It is also emphasized that CD133 is an appropriate stem cell marker for gliomas. Targeting of cancer cells is also explained.

Individual neoplastic diseases often show discrete growth direct effect of tumor metastases or to adverse consequences patterns subject to many modifications according to the associated with these therapeutic modes (e.g., complications stage of the disease, the species involved and the tumor type of immunosuppression which can lead to mortality arising concerned. Primary neoplasms are less difficult to treat in from infectious disease). contrast to secondary neoplasms. The chief type of secon­ It is therefore quite clear that there is a crucial need for dary neoplastic growth, metastasis, is also comparatively new methods for the detection of micrometastases and the development of new modalities for the treatment of estab­ less well understood. Phylogenetically, metastasis attains its highest level of development in the mammal and is best lished metastases. It is likely that such modalities must known in man, but is still far from being understood. overcome tumor heterogeneity and drug resistance to yield new therapeutic modalities with improved margin of safety The process of cancer growth and progression, from the initiation of neoplastic transformation of normal cells to the and efficacy over currently available anti-neoplastic drugs.

In recent years, great strides have been made in the field of cancer research. Now, with Basic Science of Cancer, a range of interrelated topics such as tumor suppressor genes, apoptosis, transcriptional regulation, pharmacology of anticancer drugs, cytogenetic techniques, oncogenes, and signal transduction are thoroughly addressed. Written for oncologists and healthcare professionals, this new comprehensive reference also discusses modern research techniques used to investigate the molecular etiology and treatment of human cancer. Topics are described using nontechnical terms. Together, complete reference listings and over 200 illustrations provide an extensive, yet introductory, look into the complex field of cancer.

Where do you begin to look for a recent, authoritative article on the diagnosis or management of a particular malignancy? The few general oncology textbooks are generally out of date. Single papers in specialized journals are informative but seldom comprehensive; these are more often preliminary reports on a very limited number of patients. Certain general journals frequently publish good in-depth reviews of cancer topics, and published symposium lectures are often the best overviews available. Unfortunately, these reviews and supplements appear sporadically, and the reader can never be sure when a topic of special interest will be covered. Cancer Treatment and Research is a series of authoritative volumes that aim to meet this need. It is an attempt to establish a critical mass of oncology literature covering virtually all oncology topics, revised frequently to keep the coverage up to date, and easily available on a single library shelf or by a single personal subscription. We have approached the problem in the following fashion: first, by dividing the oncology literature into specific subdivisions such as lung cancer, genitourinary cancer, pediatric oncology, etc.; and second, by asking eminent authorities in each of these areas to edit a volume on the specific topic on an annual or biannual basis. Each topic and tumor type is covered in a volume appearing frequently and predictably, discussing current di­ agnosis, staging, markers, all forms of treatment modalities, basic biology, and more.

During the last 30 years it has become clearly evident that oxidative stress and free radical biology play key roles in carcinogenesis, cancer progression, cancer therapy, and normal tissue damage that limits treatment efficacy during cancer therapy. These mechanistic observations have led to the realization that free radical biology and cancer biology are two integrally related fields of investigation that can greatly benefit from cross fertilization of theoretical constructs. The current volume of scientific papers was assembled under the heading of Oxidative Stress in Cancer Biology and Therapy in order to stimulate the discussion of how the knowledge gained in the emerging field of oxidative stress in cancer biology can be utilized to more effectively design interventions to enhance therapeutic responses while causing fewer treatment limiting complications. The chapters contained in this volume provide highly informative emerging perspectives on how that selective enhancement of oxidative stress in cancerous tissues can be used as a target for enhancing therapeutic outcomes as well as how selective inhibition of oxidative stress could spare normal tissue damage and inhibit carcinogenesis. In this regard, the book represents an outstanding resource for both basic and translational scientists as well as clinicians interested in the field of oxidative stress and cancer therapy.

The clinical significance of tumor spread has always been appreciated. Yet, in spite of the pioneering work and outstanding contributions of investigators such as D. Coman, H. Green, B. Fisher, S. Wood and I. Zeidman, studies on metastasis rarely achieved the popularity afforded to more esoteric areas of tumor biology. Tumor dissemination, occurring as it does in a responding host and being composed of a series of dynamic int~ractions, is a highly complex phenomenon. Few investigators were brave enough to attempt to unravel the mechanisms involved. Paradoxically, this very complexity may have contributed, in part, to the recent upsurge of interest in metastasis research. More and more researchers are becoming fascinated by the complexities of the cellular interactions involved in tumor spread. Accompanying this intellectual stimulation have been technological advances in related fields which allow the derivation of new model systems. The mechanisms of metastatic spread are increasingly amenable to both the reductionist and holistic approaches and it is the purpose of this volume to present many of these model systems while emphasizing the intricacy and complexity of the processes they mimic. We have attempted to emphasize two topics not previously covered in depth in previous books on metastases. These are in vitro models of invasion and in­ teractions of tumor cells with connective tissue.

Initiation of cancer in the cell is experimentally related to action of chemicals and radiation. For understanding the first steps of this interaction, approved methods from quantum theory and solid state physics are applied by the authors.The approach of this book is interdisciplinary. Theoretical models are qualitatively applied. Known effects, like oncogene activation, anti-oncogenes, and disturbances of the cell's self-regulation are explained. The authors propose possible points of intervention in the cancer initiation process based on the theoretical considerations.