Tumor Microenvironment

This volume discusses recent research advances in cancer biology, focusing on the role of the tumor microenvironment. Taken alongside its companion volumes, Tumor Microenvironment: Recent Advances covers the latest research on various aspects of the tumor microenvironment, as well as future directions. Useful for introducing the newer generation of researchers to the history of how scientists studied the tumor microenvironment as well as how this knowledge is currently applied for cancer treatments, it will be essential reading for advanced cell biology and cancer biology students, as well as researchers seeking an update on research on the tumor microenvironment.

The microenvironment in which a tumor originates plays a critical role in its initiation and progression. Tumor Microenvironment reviews the importance of tumor microenvironment in cancer management. Particular emphasis is placed on discussing how the unique characteristics of the tumor microenvironment not only impact disease progression and response to conventional anticancer therapies, but have also led to the identification of potential new therapeutic targets and treatment possibilities for cancer patients. Tumor Microenvironment also reviews the fundamental basis of target development, preclinical assessment, and the current clinical status of these therapies.

This open access volume will introduce recent discoveries in cancer metabolism since the publication of the first edition in 2018, providing readers with an up-to-date understanding of developments in the field. Genetic alterations in cancer, in addition to being the fundamental drivers of tumorigenesis, can give rise to a variety of metabolic adaptations that allow cancer cells to survive and proliferate in diverse tumor microenvironments. This metabolic flexibility is different from normal cellular metabolic processes and leads to heterogeneity in cancer metabolism within the same cancer type or even within the same tumor. In this book, the authors delve into the complexity and diversity of cancer metabolism and highlight how understanding the heterogeneity of cancer metabolism is fundamental to the development of effective metabolism-based therapeutic strategies for cancer treatment. Deciphering how cancer cells utilize various nutrient resources will enable clinicians and researchers to pair specific chemotherapeutic agents with patients who are most likely to respond with positive outcomes, allowing for more cost-effective and personalized cancer treatment. This book has four major parts. Part one will cover the basic metabolism of cancer cells, followed by a discussion of the heterogeneity of cancer metabolism in part two. Part three addresses the relationship between cancer cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts, and the new part four will explore the metabolic interplay between cancer and other diseases. This new section makes the book unique from other texts currently available on the market. The second edition will be useful for cancer metabolism researchers, cancer biologists, epidemiologists, physicians, health care professionals in related disciplines, policymakers, marketing and economic strategists, among others. It may also be used in courses such as intro to cancer metabolism, cancer biology, and related biochemistry courses for undergraduate and graduate students.

This book addresses the biological processes relevant to the immune phenotypes of cancer and their significance for immune responsiveness, based on the premise that malignant cells manipulate their surroundings through an evolutionary process that is controlled by interactions with innate immune sensors as well as the adaptive recognition of self/non-self. Checkpoint inhibitor therapy is now an accepted new form of cancer treatment. Other immuno-oncology approaches, such as adoptive cell therapy and metabolic inhibitors, have also shown promising results for specific indications. Immune resistance is common, however, limiting the efficacy of immunotherapy in many common cancer types. The reasons for such resistance are diverse and peculiar to the immune landscapes of individual cancers, and to the treatment modality used. Accordingly, approaches to circumvent resistance need to take into account context-specific genetic, biological and environmental factors that may affect the cancer immune cycle, and which can best be understood by studying the target tissue and correlated systemic immune markers. Understanding the major requirements for the evolutionary process governing human cancer growth in the immune-competent host will guide effective therapeutic choices that are tailored to the biology of individual cancers.

This book reviews different aspects of the cancer microenvironment, and its regulation and importance for tumor progression. Practical applications, in terms of how biomarkers are increasingly included in therapy protocols, will also be discussed. Biomarkers of the Tumor Microenvironment: Basic Studies and Practical Applications is aimed at research pathologists in the cancer field, and also cancer researchers from other backgrounds, especially those using morphology techniques and models focusing on cross-talk between different cell types in tumors.

This second edition provides update and new chapters detailing core and emerging in vitro and in vivo protocols. Chapters guide readers through cellular and molecular biology approaches, in vivo genetic approaches, various “omics”-based strategies, therapeutic strategies, and advanced techniques in the fields of tissue engineering and nanotechnology. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Cutting-edge and thorough, The Tumor Microenvironment: Methods and Protocols, Second Edition is a valuable resource for both novice and expert scientists in this developing field.

This volume discusses novel concepts in cancer biology, focusing on different factors that affect the tumor microenvironment. Topics covered include sex-based differences in the tumor microenironment, dormancy in the tumor microenvironment, the influence of obesity on the tumor microenvironment, and much more. Taken alongside its companion volumes, Tumor Microenvironment: Novel Concepts covers the latest research on various aspects of the tumor microenvironment, as well as future directions. Useful for introducing the newer generation of researchers to the history of how scientists studied the tumor microenvironment as well as how this knowledge is currently applied for cancer treatments, it will be essential reading for advanced cell biology and cancer biology students, as well as researchers seeking an update on research on the tumor microenvironment.

Over the past decade, the tumor microenvironment has become one of the most important research areas in cancer biology, as cells within the tumor microenvironment, despite being outnumbered by healthy cells, are able to evade surveillance and immune-mediated destruction. While researchers have learned a great deal about the cellular and structural makeup of the tumor microenvironment, there has been a growing understanding of the metabolic interplay between the tumor micronenvironment’s various cellular constituents and how each of them contributes to overall tumor growth and metastases. This new volume will guide researchers, students, oncologists and academics through a rapidly developing and changing field with a thorough understanding of tumor microenvironment biology from a cellular, structural, metabolic, and immunological perspective.