Cancer cells may promote metastases and resistance to therapy, depending on their state

Malignant breast cancer cells that have undergone partial EMT ( green ) leave the original cell cluster ( red ) and migrate to the surrounding area. (Image: University of Basel, Department of Biomedicine) - A type of cell transformation known as EMT enables cancer cells to break away from the tumor and form metastases elsewhere. However, this process does not always take place in full. Researchers at the University of Basel have now been able to show that tumor cells contribute differently to the formation of metastases and the development of therapy resistance, depending on whether they have undergone full or only partial transformation. Most cancer patients do not die as a result of their primary tumors, but from metastases that destroy vital organs. Metastases occur when cancer cells detach from the original tumor and migrate into healthy tissue. A multi-stage process called epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays a crucial role in this process, enabling tumor cells to break away from their cell cluster and spread throughout the body.