The plasticity of cancer-associated fibroblasts
Fibroblasts are highly adaptable mesenchymal cells that can dynamically adjust their properties in response to environmental changes.
Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) exhibit significant heterogeneity in their origins, spatial distribution, phenotypes, and functions, a feature that is consistently observed across various tumor types and species.
CAF subsets can dynamically interconvert in response to tumor microenvironment (TME)-derived cues and therapy-induced stress, and this is driven by epigenetic changes and transcription factor hubs.
CAF plasticity offers a rationale for shifting their phenotype from tumor promoting to tumor-restraining, and this presents a potential strategy for anticancer therapy development.
https://www.cell.com/trends/cancer/fulltext/S2405-8033(25)00108-6
