Abstract
Interaction of tumour cells with their microenvironment impacts on all aspects of cancer, ranging from development through to treatment response. In this issue, Dvorak and colleagues1 reveal a novel tumour/microevironment relationship that may drive leukemia pathogenesis. Specifically, they find that leukemic cells secrete chromatin-complexed DNA that, in turn, triggers a variety of harmful effects, including cell death, in neighbouring stromal cells. Through this toxicity, DNA-mediated bone marrow destruction could promote disease progression by allowing leukemic cells to exit the bone marrow into the circulation.
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Tait, S. DNA: leukemia's secret weapon of bone mass destruction. Oncogene 32, 5199–5200 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/onc.2012.639
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/onc.2012.639