Review
Nature Reviews Cancer 6, 924-935 (December 2006) | doi:10.1038/nrc2013
Cancer as an evolutionary and ecological process
Lauren M.F. Merlo1, John W. Pepper2, Brian J. Reid3 & Carlo C. Maley1 About the authors
Abstract
Neoplasms are microcosms of evolution. Within a neoplasm, a mosaic of mutant cells compete for space and resources, evade predation by the immune system and can even cooperate to disperse and colonize new organs. The evolution of neoplastic cells explains both why we get cancer and why it has been so difficult to cure. The tools of evolutionary biology and ecology are providing new insights into neoplastic progression and the clinical control of cancer.
- View At a Glance
Author affiliations
- Cellular and Molecular Oncology Program, The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Biological Sciences West, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA.
- Human Biology Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, PO BOX 19024, Seattle, Washington 98109, and Departments of Medicine and Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.
Correspondence to: Carlo C. Maley1 Email: cmaley@alum.mit.edu
Published online 16 November 2006
MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS
These links to content published by NPG are automatically generated.
RESEARCH
Gender and Strain Influence on Neurogenesis in Dentate Gyrus of Young RatsJournal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism Original Article
Temporal changes in allele frequency, genetic variation and inbreeding depression in small populations of the guppy, Poecilia reticulataHeredity Original Article
Esophageal actinomycosis after allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for extranodal natural killer/T cell lymphoma, nasal typeBone Marrow Transplantation Correspondence
See all 7 matches for Research