Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Cancer

Cancer

Cancers arise due to mutations in genes involved in the regulation of cell division, which leads to unrestricted cell proliferation. Modern science and medicine have made great strides in the understanding and treatment of cancer, including eradicating cancer in some patients. However, there is still no cure for cancer. This is largely due to the fact that cancer is a large group of many diseases.

Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell

Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell

Cancer arises from mutations in the critical genes that allow healthy cells to escape cell cycle regulation and acquire the ability to proliferate indefinitely. Though originating from a single mutation event in one of the originator cells, cancer progresses when the mutant cell lines continue to gain more and more mutations, and finally, become malignant. For example, chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) develops initially as a non-lethal increase in white blood cells, which progressively...

Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells

Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells

Cancer cells accumulate genetic changes at an abnormally rapid rate due to the defects in the DNA repair mechanisms. From an evolutionary perspective, such genetic instability is advantageous for cancer development. Mutant cell lines accumulate a series of beneficial mutations that contribute to their progression into cancer.
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...

Tumor Progression

Tumor Progression

Tumor progression is a phenomenon where the pre-formed tumor acquires successive mutations to become clinically more aggressive and malignant. In the 1950s, Foulds first described the stepwise progression of cancer cells through successive stages.
Colon cancer is one of the best-documented examples of tumor progression. Early mutation in the APC gene in colon cells causes a small growth on the colon wall called a polyp. With time, this polyp grows into a benign, pre-cancerous tumor. Further...

T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection

T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection

T cells are integral to our adaptive immune system, recognizing and effectively responding to foreign antigens. T cell activation and clonal selection are pivotal in orchestrating this immune response. This article elucidates these mechanisms, detailing the roles of cluster of differentiation (CD) markers, major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules, costimulatory signals, and the process of clonal selection.
Naive T cells that have not yet encountered an antigen express two primary CD...

Cancer Stem Cells and Tumor Maintenance

Cancer Stem Cells and Tumor Maintenance

Early diagnosis and treatment can often cure cancer. However, even with treatment, residual cells called cancer stem cells (CSC) might remain, often causing tumor recurrence. These cancer stem cells possess the potential for self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation and are often responsible for the therapeutic resistance displayed in most cancers.
Cancer stem cells are thought to originate from tissue-specific normal stem cells or progenitor cells. The normal stem cells usually reside in...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

PHYFUM: Phylogenetic Reconstruction of Normal and Pre-malignant Tissue Evolution Using Fluctuating Methylation.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

Timing of microbial exposure and risk of infectionpromoted acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Haematologica·2026

Same author

Divergent understandings in comparative oncology.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same author

Immune-cancer analyses across mammals reveal a potential trophic level and platelet-linked tradeoff between cancer and trauma mortality.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

Leveraging comparative phylogenetics for evolutionary medicine: applications to comparative oncology.

Evolution, medicine, and public health·2026

Same author

Does Fermentation Enhance Beverage Safety? Kombucha's Resistance to Microbial Invasion Suggests a Protective Role.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same journal

Six ways to put the public at the heart of science and policy.

Nature·2026

Same journal

The complex truth about trust in science.

Nature·2026

Same journal

Have people stopped trusting science? The data tell a surprising story.

Nature·2026

Same journal

How FAIR data are helping to build trust in science.

Nature·2026

Same journal

Scientists should recognize their own political biases to build public trust.

Nature·2026

Same journal

Harmonizing standards and resources for the medical genome.

Nature·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 8, 2026

Bone Marrow Transplantation Procedures in Mice to Study Clonal Hematopoiesis

Bone Marrow Transplantation Procedures in Mice to Study Clonal Hematopoiesis

Published on: May 26, 2021

Clonal evolution in cancer.

Mel Greaves¹, Carlo C Maley

¹Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, Brookes Lawley Building, 15 Cotswold Road, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5NG, UK. mel.greaves@icr.ac.uk

|January 20, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Cancer evolution is a complex Darwinian process. Understanding this evolutionary dynamics, including genetic diversity and resistance, is key to overcoming therapeutic failures and improving cancer control strategies.

More Related Videos

Characterizing Mutational Load and Clonal Composition of Human Blood

Characterizing Mutational Load and Clonal Composition of Human Blood

Published on: July 11, 2019

VDJ-Seq: Deep Sequencing Analysis of Rearranged Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Gene to Reveal Clonal Evolution Patterns of B Cell Lymphoma

VDJ-Seq: Deep Sequencing Analysis of Rearranged Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Gene to Reveal Clonal Evolution Patterns of B Cell Lymphoma

Published on: December 28, 2015

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 8, 2026

Bone Marrow Transplantation Procedures in Mice to Study Clonal Hematopoiesis

Bone Marrow Transplantation Procedures in Mice to Study Clonal Hematopoiesis

Published on: May 26, 2021

Characterizing Mutational Load and Clonal Composition of Human Blood

Characterizing Mutational Load and Clonal Composition of Human Blood

Published on: July 11, 2019

VDJ-Seq: Deep Sequencing Analysis of Rearranged Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Gene to Reveal Clonal Evolution Patterns of B Cell Lymphoma

VDJ-Seq: Deep Sequencing Analysis of Rearranged Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Gene to Reveal Clonal Evolution Patterns of B Cell Lymphoma

Published on: December 28, 2015

Area of Science:

Oncology
Evolutionary Biology
Cancer Research

Background:

Cancers are complex systems characterized by clonal expansion, genetic diversification, and selection within tissue ecosystems.
Cancer evolution exhibits highly variable patterns of genetic diversity and clonal architecture.
Therapeutic interventions can inadvertently drive the selection and expansion of resistant cancer variants.

Purpose of the Study:

To explore the complex evolutionary dynamics of cancer.
To understand how therapeutic interventions impact cancer evolution and resistance.
To identify how the Darwinian nature of cancer can be leveraged for improved control.

Main Methods:

Analysis of cancer clonal evolution dynamics.
Modeling of cancer genetic diversification and selection processes.
Review of therapeutic intervention impacts on cancer resistance.

Main Results:

Cancer evolution is a reiterative process driven by clonal selection.
Therapeutic interventions can act as strong selective pressures, promoting resistance.
The Darwinian nature of cancer is a primary cause of treatment failure.

Conclusions:

The inherent Darwinian evolution of cancer necessitates adaptive therapeutic strategies.
Leveraging evolutionary principles may offer new avenues for effective cancer control.
Understanding cancer's adaptive landscape is crucial for overcoming treatment resistance.