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      The biology and function of fibroblasts in cancer.

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      Nature reviews. Cancer
      Springer Nature

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          Abstract

          Among all cells, fibroblasts could be considered the cockroaches of the human body. They survive severe stress that is usually lethal to all other cells, and they are the only normal cell type that can be live-cultured from post-mortem and decaying tissue. Their resilient adaptation may reside in their intrinsic survival programmes and cellular plasticity. Cancer is associated with fibroblasts at all stages of disease progression, including metastasis, and they are a considerable component of the general host response to tissue damage caused by cancer cells. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) become synthetic machines that produce many different tumour components. CAFs have a role in creating extracellular matrix (ECM) structure and metabolic and immune reprogramming of the tumour microenvironment with an impact on adaptive resistance to chemotherapy. The pleiotropic actions of CAFs on tumour cells are probably reflective of them being a heterogeneous and plastic population with context-dependent influence on cancer.

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          Author and article information

          Journal
          Nat. Rev. Cancer
          Nature reviews. Cancer
          Springer Nature
          1474-1768
          1474-175X
          August 23 2016
          : 16
          : 9
          Affiliations
          [1 ] Department of Cancer Biology, Metastasis Research Center, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77054, USA.
          Article
          nrc.2016.73
          10.1038/nrc.2016.73
          27550820
          50ae87bd-37d7-4ffb-be4f-b57903142ecf
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