Does the cell number 10(9) still really fit one gram of tumor tissue?
A tumor reaching the size of 1 cm(3) (approximately 1 g wet weight) is commonly assumed to contain 1 x 10(9) cells. This paper comments on the probable origin of this "magic" number and on some possible reasons why it has remained in use until now. However, mostly in epithelial tumors (85% of all human tumors) a cell number one order of magnitude smaller would be more realistic.
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D000818:Animals; D048429:Cell Size; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D051381:Rats