Lymph node metastases can invade local blood vessels, exit the node, and colonize distant organs in mice
Ethel R Pereira, Dmitriy Kedrin, Giorgio Seano, Olivia Gautier, Eelco F J Meijer, Dennis Jones, Shan-Min Chin, Shuji Kitahara, Echoe M Bouta, Jonathan Chang, Elizabeth Beech, Han-Sin Jeong, Michael C Carroll, Alphonse G Taghian, Timothy P Padera, Ethel R Pereira, Dmitriy Kedrin, Giorgio Seano, Olivia Gautier, Eelco F J Meijer, Dennis Jones, Shan-Min Chin, Shuji Kitahara, Echoe M Bouta, Jonathan Chang, Elizabeth Beech, Han-Sin Jeong, Michael C Carroll, Alphonse G Taghian, Timothy P Padera
Abstract
Lymph node metastases in cancer patients are associated with tumor aggressiveness, poorer prognoses, and the recommendation for systemic therapy. Whether cancer cells in lymph nodes can seed distant metastases has been a subject of considerable debate. We studied mice implanted with cancer cells (mammary carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, or melanoma) expressing the photoconvertible protein Dendra2. This technology allowed us to selectively photoconvert metastatic cells in the lymph node and trace their fate. We found that a fraction of these cells invaded lymph node blood vessels, entered the blood circulation, and colonized the lung. Thus, in mouse models, lymph node metastases can be a source of cancer cells for distant metastases. Whether this mode of dissemination occurs in cancer patients remains to be determined.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare no competing financial interests.
Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.
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Source: PubMed