Metastasis occurs when genetically unstable cancer cells adapt to a tissue microenvironment that is distant from the primary tumor. This process involves both the selection of traits that are advantageous to cancer cells and the concomitant recruitment of traits in the tumor stroma that accommodate invasion by metastatic cells. Recent conceptual and technological advances promote our understanding of the origins and nature of cancer metastasis.
转移发生在遗传性不稳定的癌细胞适应远离原发性肿瘤的组织微环境时。这一过程既涉及对有利于癌细胞特性的选择,也同时伴随着肿瘤基质中为适应转移细胞侵袭而相应特性的募集。最新的概念与技术进展促进了我们对癌症转移起源和本质的理解。