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Cancer stem cells: an evolving concept

Abstract

The cancer stem cell (CSC) concept derives from the fact that cancers are dysregulated tissue clones whose continued propagation is vested in a biologically distinct subset of cells that are typically rare. This idea is not new, but has recently gained prominence because of advances in defining normal tissue hierarchies, a greater appreciation of the multistep nature of oncogenesis and improved methods to propagate primary human cancers in immunodeficient mice. As a result we have obtained new insights into why the CSC concept is not universally applicable, as well as a new basis for understanding the complex evolution, phenotypic heterogeneity and therapeutic challenges of many human cancers.

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Figure 1: Xenograft assays to measure human CSCs.
Figure 2: Prospective purification of CSCs.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge research support from the British Columbia Cancer Foundation, the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance, the Canadian Cancer Society, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Canadian Stem Cell Network, the Ontario Institute of Cancer Research and the Terry Fox Foundation. L.V.N. and R.V. are both recipients of Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships from the CIHR.

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Nguyen, L., Vanner, R., Dirks, P. et al. Cancer stem cells: an evolving concept. Nat Rev Cancer 12, 133–143 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrc3184

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