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Mammary development meets cancer genomics

Nature Medicine volume 15, pages 842–844 (2009)Cite this article

Mammary epithelial cell development is thought to progress from undifferentiated stem cells into at least two differentiated cell types. A new study has now characterized some of these distinct developmental stages and links them to tumor subtypes previously defined by gene expression profiling (pages 907–913).

Genomic studies of epithelial tumors have identified distinct subtypes with differences in survival and response to therapy, most notably for breast cancer1. Many researchers have speculated that these genomically defined tumor subtypes may represent transformation of stem cells with arrest at specific stages of development or, alternatively, direct transformation of various mature cell types. In this issue of Nature Medicine, Lim et al.2 delineate the human mammary epithelial hierarchy and then use this as a framework for understanding the cellular origins of the various molecular subtypes of breast cancer. They provide a direct link between mammary development and tumor profiles.

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Figure 1: Model of the human mammary epithelial hierarchy linked to cancer subtype.

Katie Vicari

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Genetics and Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Aleix Prat and Charles M. Perou are at the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.,

    Aleix Prat & Charles M. Perou

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  1. Aleix Prat
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  2. Charles M. Perou
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Correspondence to Charles M. Perou.

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Prat, A., Perou, C. Mammary development meets cancer genomics. Nat Med 15, 842–844 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm0809-842

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