Origins of lymphatic and distant metastases in human colorectal cancer
Abstract
Cancer cells from primary tumors can migrate to regional lymph nodes and distant organs. The prevailing model in oncology is that lymph node metastases give rise to distant metastases. This “sequential progression model” is the rationale for surgical removal of tumor-draining lymph nodes. Naxerova et al. used phylogenetic methods to reconstruct the evolutionary relationship of primary tumors, lymph node metastases, and distant metastases in 17 patients with colorectal cancer (see the Perspective by Markowitz). The sequential progression model applied to only one-third of the patients. In the other two-thirds, distant metastases and lymph node metastases originated from independent subclones within the primary tumor.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Jul 07, 2017
- Source ID
- 10.1126/science.aai8515
Entities
People
- Andrew Rowan
- Charles Swanton
- Elena Brachtel
- Hans Clevers
- Jochen K Lennerz
- Johannes G Reiter
- Kamila Naxerova
- Marc van de Wetering
- Martin A. Nowak
- Rakesh Jain
- Stephen Elledge
- Tianxi Cai
Organizations
- Austrian Science Fund
- Francis Crick Institute
- Harvard Medical School
- Harvard University
- Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
- National Cancer Institute
- National Human Genome Research Institute
- United States Department of Defense
- University College London
- University Medical Center Utrecht