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Breast cancer brain metastases: biology and new clinical perspectives
- Source :
- Breast Cancer Research : BCR
- Publication Year :
- 2016
- Publisher :
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2016.
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Abstract
- Because of improvements in the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer, the development of brain metastases (BM) has become a major limitation of life expectancy and quality of life for many breast cancer patients. The improvement of management strategies for BM is thus an important clinical challenge, especially among high-risk patients such as human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive and triple-negative patients. However, the formation of BM as a multistep process is thus far poorly understood. To grow in the brain, single tumor cells must pass through the tight blood–brain barrier (BBB). The BBB represents an obstacle for circulating tumor cells entering the brain, but it also plays a protective role against immune cell and toxic agents once metastatic cells have colonized the cerebral compartment. Furthermore, animal studies have shown that, after passing the BBB, the tumor cells not only require close contact with endothelial cells but also interact closely with many different brain residential cells. Thus, in addition to a genetic predisposition of the tumor cells, cellular adaptation processes within the new microenvironment may also determine the ability of a tumor cell to metastasize. In this review, we summarize the biology of breast cancer that has spread into the brain and discuss the implications for current and potential future treatment strategies.
- Subjects :
- 0301 basic medicine
Cellular adaptation
Cell
Breast Neoplasms
Review
Bioinformatics
Blood–brain barrier
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Breast cancer
Circulating tumor cell
Immune system
Surgical oncology
Animals
Humans
Medicine
Genetic Predisposition to Disease
Neoplasm Metastasis
Brain Neoplasms
business.industry
Endothelial Cells
medicine.disease
Metastatic breast cancer
030104 developmental biology
medicine.anatomical_structure
Blood-Brain Barrier
030220 oncology & carcinogenesis
Female
business
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 1465542X
- Volume :
- 18
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Breast Cancer Research
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....8d5721f4009a0876ad95b216bae2ae0d