[A roadmap toward total elimination of cancer]

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) were first experimentally identified in leukemia in 1997, and following researches demonstrated the existence of CSCs in a variety of solid cancers. It has been reported that CSCs are responsible for tumorigenicity, chemoresistance, and metastasis as well as heterogeneity of cancers. Therefore, elimination of CSCs may be crucial to eradicate cancer. Recent reports indicate that CSCs from some solid cancers show phenotypic plasticity, and intrinsic or extrinsic signals can revert differentiated cancer cells back into CSCs. These traits of CSCs may cause problems in devising targeted therapy against CSCs in future. Here we discuss how we can achieve total elimination of cancer cells in light of recent progress in understanding of CSCs.