Targeting the Stem Cell Properties of Adult Breast Cancer Cells: Using Combinatorial Strategies to Overcome Drug Resistance.

Purpose of review: Cancer is a major public health problem worldwide. In aggressive cancers, which are heterogeneous in nature, there exists a paucity of targetable molecules that can be used to predict outcome and response to therapy in patients, especially those in the high risk category with a propensity to relapse following chemotherapy. This review addresses the challenges pertinent to treating aggressive cancer cells with inherent stem cell properties, with a special focus on triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).

Recent findings: Plasticity underlies the cancer stem cell (CSC) phenotype in aggressive cancers like TNBC. Progenitors and CSCs implement similar signaling pathways to sustain growth, and the convergence of embryonic and tumorigenic signaling pathways has led to the discovery of novel oncofetal targets, rigorously regulated during normal development, but aberrantly reactivated in aggressive forms of cancer.

Summary: Translational studies have shown that Nodal, an embryonic morphogen, is reactivated in aggressive cancers, but not in normal tissues, and underlies tumor growth, invasion, metastasis and drug resistance. Front-line therapies do not inhibit Nodal, but when a combinatorial approach is used with an agent such as doxorubicin followed by anti-Nodal antibody therapy, significant decreases in cell growth and viability occur. These findings are of special interest in the development of new therapeutic interventions that target the stem cell properties of cancer cells to overcome drug resistance and metastasis.