Proteomic approach to understand metastatic spread

The majority of tumor-related deaths are due to metastasis. Despite the clinical importance of understanding metastasis, we lack knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying tumor cell spreading and cell survival far from the primary tumor. Elucidating the molecular characteristics of highly metastatic carcinoma cells would help identify biomarkers or therapeutic targets relevant to predicting or combatting metastasis, and for this the phenotype of metastatic cells could be much more important than their genotype. Hence, proteomic approaches have wide potential utility. This review discusses possibilities of analyzing metastasis-specific protein patterns in a range of sample types, including in vitro and in vivo cancer models, and tissues and biological fluids from patients. Proteome approaches can identify proteins involved in regulating the metastatic capacities of tumors.