Mechanisms of invasion and metastasis in human neuroblastoma.
Neuroblastoma is the second most common solid tumor in children that is metastatic in 70% of patients at the time of diagnosis. The ability of neuroblastoma cells to colonize distant organs like the bone marrow and the bone is the result of close interactions between tumor cells and the microenvironment. Significant progress has been recently made in our understanding of the mechanisms that promote the colonization and invasion of the bone by neuroblastoma cells and these mechanisms are reviewed in this article. How this understanding is now allowing us to test new therapeutic agents specifically targeted at interfering with neuroblastoma metastasis is then discussed.
Ara
Tasnim
T
Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Pediatrics and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, USC Keck School of Medicine and The Saban Research Institute of Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90027, USA.
DeClerck
Yves A
YA
D000818:Animals; D001853:Bone Marrow; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary / Q000628:therapy; D002465:Cell Movement; D006801:Humans; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009447:Neuroblastoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy