Perspectives

Nature Reviews Cancer 9, 665-674 (September 2009) | doi:10.1038/nrc2714

Article series: Therapeutic resistance

OpinionEnvironment-mediated drug resistance: a major contributor to minimal residual disease

Mark B. Meads1, Robert A. Gatenby2 & William S. Dalton1  About the authors

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Environment-mediated drug resistance is a form of de novo drug resistance that protects tumour cells from the initial effects of diverse therapies. Surviving foci of residual disease can then develop complex and permanent acquired resistance in response to the selective pressure of therapy. Recent evidence indicates that environment-mediated drug resistance arises from an adaptive, reciprocal signalling dialogue between tumour cells and the surrounding microenvironment. We propose that new therapeutic strategies targeting this interaction should be applied during initial treatment to prevent the emergence of acquired resistance.

Author affiliations

  1. Mark B. Meads and William S. Dalton are at the Department of Experimental Therapeutics and Oncologic Sciences, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, Florida 33612, USA.
  2. Robert A. Gatenby is at the Department of Radiology and Integrated Mathematical Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, Florida 33612, USA.

Correspondence to: William S. Dalton1 Email: william.dalton@moffitt.org

Published online 20 August 2009

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