The Role of Inflammatory Mediators in Colorectal Cancer Hepatic Metastasis
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Updated: Sep 1, 2025

Portal Vein Injection of Colorectal Cancer Organoids to Study the Liver Metastasis Stroma
Published on: September 3, 2021
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
Abstract:
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of death in cancer patients in the USA, whereas the major cause of CRC deaths is hepatic metastases. The liver is the most common site of metastasis in patients with CRC due to hepatic portal veins receiving blood from the digestive tract. Understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms of hepatic metastases is of dire need for the development of potent targeted therapeutics. Immuno-signaling molecules including cytokines and chemokines play a pivotal role in hepatic metastases from CRC. This brief review discusses the involvement of three representative cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β), a lipid molecule PGE2 and two chemokines (CXCL1 and CXCL2) in the process of CRC liver metastases.
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