Abstract ES1-3: umor-stroma interactions in breast cancer progression

Abstract The interaction of tumor cells with stroma cells and stromal components not only promotes tumor progression and metastasis, but also influences tumor cell responses to chemotherapy, endocrine therapy and targeted agents. As a consequence, there is an urgent need to identify strategies to efficiently target these interaction pathways for the prevention or suppression of metastatic disease and to overcome treatment-resistant tumor progression in advanced breast cancer. This talk will focus on the tumor-stroma crosstalk pathways underpinning the striking heterogeneity between different breast cancers in their ability to recruit and activate a pro-tumorigenic stroma. In particular (a) the mechanisms involved in the activation of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), (b) the role of activated pericytes in promoting metastatic dissemination, and (c) the mechanisms by which a productive microenvironmental niche is initiated at metastatic sites. Citation Format: Isacke CM. umor-stroma interactions in breast cancer progression [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr ES1-3.