title: Biology of Bone Metastases in Prostate Cancer.
abstract: Advanced-stage prostate cancer (PCa) patients are often diagnosed with bone metastases. Bone metastases remain incurable and therapies are palliative. PCa cells prevalently cause osteoblastic lesions, characterized by an excess of bone formation. The prevailing concept indicates that PCa cancer cell secrete an excess of paracrine factors stimulating osteoblasts directly or indirectly, thereby leading to an excess of bone formation. The exact mechanisms by which bone formation stimulates PCa cell growth are mostly elusive. In this review, the mechanisms of PCa cancer cell osteotropism, the cancer cell-induced response within the bone marrow/bone stroma, and therapeutic stromal targets will be summarized.
authors.affiliation: Urology Research Laboratory, Department of Urology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Department of Clinical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Janine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hensel
authors.affiliation: Urology Research Laboratory, Department of Urology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Department of Clinical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland. Electronic address: george.thalmann@insel.ch.
authors.forename: George N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Thalmann
mesh_terms: D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010006:Osteoblasts / Q000502:physiology; D010010:Osteoclasts / Q000502:physiology; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*