Understanding oral cancer invasion from the perspective of genetic heterogeneity

doi:10.19438/j.cjoms.2022.02.017

Abstract

Abstract: The invasive front of oral cancer is a region characterized by detached mesenchymal-like tumor cells or cell groups. The process of the formation of the invasive front should be interrogated in order to understand tumor invasion. A certain degree of intratumor heterogeneity and clonal relationship exists between the tumor body and the invasive front. Understanding tumor invasion at genetic level requires revealing the clonal structure as well as the evolutionary relationship between the tumor body and the invasive front. The key genetic events driving tumor invasion can also be detected by reconstructing the clonal structure of the two tumor regions, on the basis of which potential therapeutic targets or biomarkers in invasion can be identified. The evolutionary trajectories in the invasion process of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) showed a great deal of intertumor heterogeneity. Researches in other cancers also found intertumor heterogeneity in the evolutionary patterns and further revealed the evolutionary process of invasive subclones and interactions between subclones. This review aimed at understanding tumor invasion in OSCC from a genetic perspective and extending our understanding of the key genetic events, genetic heterogeneity and clonal evolution during tumor invasion through evaluation of current knowledge in tumor invasion in other cancer types.

Key words: Oral squamous cell carcinoma, Tumor invasion, Invasive front, Genetic heterogeneity, Clonal evolution

CLC Number:

R739.8

QU Chu-xiang, SUN Shu-yang, ZHANG Zhi-yuan. Understanding oral cancer invasion from the perspective of genetic heterogeneity[J]. China Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 2022, 20(2): 193-197.

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