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Updated: May 6, 2026

Models of Bone Metastasis
Published on: September 4, 2012
[Pathophysiology of bone metastases and new molecular targets involved in bone remodelling]
1Inserm, UMR1033, UFR de médecine Lyon-Est (domaine Laennec), 7-11, rue Guillaume-Paradin, 69372 Lyon cedex 08, France, Université de Lyon, 69008 Lyon, France, LabEx DEVweCAN, 69372 Lyon, France.
Abstract:
Bone metastases are common complications of cancers. These skeletal lesions are usually osteolytic (excess of bone destruction), osteosclerostic (excess of bone formation) or mixed. Metastatic cancer cells residing in the bone marrow alter the functions of bone-resorbing (osteoclasts) and bone-forming (osteoblasts) cells and hijack signals coming from the bone matrix. In this review, we first described cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive cancer cells to colonize the bone marrow. We next show how cancer cells alter bone remodelling to promote the formation of osteolytic or osteosclerotic lesions.
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