Unraveling the underlying mechanisms of cancer stem cells in therapeutic resistance for optimizing treatment strategies

Bibliographic Details
Title: Unraveling the underlying mechanisms of cancer stem cells in therapeutic resistance for optimizing treatment strategies
Authors: Yunhan Tan, Siyuan Qin, Zhe Zhang, Yongen Liu, Li Zhou, Bowen Li, Edouard C. Nice, Yuanyuan Zhang, Jing Jing
Source: MedComm – Oncology, Vol 4, Iss 1, Pp n/a-n/a (2025)
Publisher Information: Wiley, 2025.
Publication Year: 2025
Collection: LCC:Neoplasms. Tumors. Oncology. Including cancer and carcinogens
Subject Terms: cancer stem cells (CSCs), combination therapy, CSC‐targeted therapy, drug resistance, Neoplasms. Tumors. Oncology. Including cancer and carcinogens, RC254-282
More Details: Abstract The success of cancer therapy has been significantly hampered by various mechanisms of therapeutic resistance. Chief among these mechanisms is the presence of clonal heterogeneity within an individual tumor mass. The introduction of the concept of cancer stem cells (CSCs)—a rare and immature subpopulation with tumorigenic potential that contributes to intratumoral heterogeneity—has deepened our understanding of drug resistance. Given the characteristics of CSCs, such as increased drug‐efflux activity, enhanced DNA‐repair capacity, high metabolic plasticity, adaptability to oxidative stress, and/or upregulated detoxifying aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzymes, CSCs have been recognized as a theoretical reservoir for resistant diseases. Implicit in this recognition is the possibility that CSC‐targeted therapeutic strategies might offer a breakthrough in overcoming drug resistance in cancer patients. Herein, we summarize the generation of CSCs and our current understanding of the mechanisms underlying CSC‐mediated therapeutic resistance. This extended knowledge has progressively been translated into novel anticancer therapeutic strategies and significantly enriched the available options for combination treatments, all of which are anticipated to improve clinical outcomes for patients experiencing CSC‐related relapse.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 2769-6448
Relation: https://doaj.org/toc/2769-6448
DOI: 10.1002/mog2.70009
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/5f575703db714ecbb80faa998e8475cd
Accession Number: edsdoj.5f575703db714ecbb80faa998e8475cd
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
More Details
ISSN:27696448
DOI:10.1002/mog2.70009
Published in:MedComm – Oncology
Language:English