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Updated: Jun 3, 2026
07:31
Injection of Syngeneic Murine Melanoma Cells to Determine Their Metastatic Potential in the Lungs
Published on: May 24, 2016
A perspective on cancer cell metastasis.
Christine L Chaffer1, Robert A Weinberg
1Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, 9 Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA. chaffer@wi.mit.edu
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|March 26, 2011
Summary
Metastasis, a leading cause of cancer mortality, is a two-phase process. Recent insights into the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition offer a clearer understanding of the initial cell translocation phase.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Metastasis is responsible for the majority of cancer-related deaths.
- The mechanisms driving metastasis remain incompletely understood.
- The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is implicated in cancer cell behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide a perspective on the metastatic process.
- To highlight recent mechanistic insights into metastasis.
- To identify future research directions for understanding cancer spread.
Main Methods:
- Review of current scientific literature on cancer metastasis.
- Analysis of emerging mechanistic insights.
- Conceptual framework development for the metastatic process.
Main Results:
- Metastasis is conceptualized as a two-phase process: physical translocation and development of a secondary lesion.
- Understanding of the initial translocation phase is advancing.
- The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition plays a key role in enabling cancer cell migration.
Conclusions:
- A clearer understanding of the initial phase of metastasis is achievable.
- Further research is needed to fully elucidate the second phase of metastasis.
- Targeting the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition may offer therapeutic strategies against cancer spread.
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