Fibroblasts, an inconspicuous but essential player in colon cancer development and progression

Figure 3 Cancer associated fibroblasts in tumor microenvironment formation. CAFs promote pro-tumorigenic microenvironment by producing extracellular matrix to provide tumor cells with a growth advantage, recruiting tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) to foster tumor cell growth, and inducing neovascularization. CAFs: Cancer associated fibroblasts; EMT: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition; VEGF: Vascular endothelial growth factor; ECM: Extracellular matrix proteins; EPCs: Endothelial progenitor cells; MMP: Matrix metalloproteinase; HIF-1α: Hypoxia-inducible factor 1α.