The microenvironmental niche in cancer progression

人们普遍认为，肿瘤局部环境中的细胞可以帮助促进肿瘤细胞的生长和扩散。我们已经证明，一种被称为周细胞的细胞类型，以前被认为通过影响新血管的形成来控制肿瘤的扩张，可能直接影响肿瘤的生长，这一概念将在人类皮肤和卵巢癌模型中进行测试。我们还将测试周细胞标志物是否能预测那些复发风险更高的癌症患者。

It is well accepted that the cells in the local environment of cancers can help to promote the growth and spread of tumour cells. We have shown that a cell type known as the pericyte previously thought to be involved in controlling tumour expansion by affecting new blood vessel formation, may directly influence tumour growth, a notion that will be tested in human skin and ovarian cancer models. We will also test if pericyte markers can predict those cancer patients at greater risk of relapse.