Romeo HE, Barreiro Arcos ML. Clinical relevance of stem cells in lung cancer. World J Stem Cells 2023; 15(6): 576-588 [PMID: 37424954 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v15.i6.576]
Corresponding Author of This Article
María Laura Barreiro Arcos, PhD, Research Scientist, School of Engineering and Agrarian Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, Institute of Biomedical Research (BIOMED-UCA-CONICET), Av. Alicia Moreau de Justo 1600, CABA C1107AZZ, Buenos Aires, Argentina. mlbarreiro@yahoo.com.ar
Research Domain of This Article
Oncology
Article-Type of This Article
Minireviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Stem Cells. Jun 26, 2023; 15(6): 576-588 Published online Jun 26, 2023. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v15.i6.576
Clinical relevance of stem cells in lung cancer
Horacio Eduardo Romeo, María Laura Barreiro Arcos
Horacio Eduardo Romeo, María Laura Barreiro Arcos, School of Engineering and Agrarian Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, Institute of Biomedical Research (BIOMED-UCA-CONICET), CABA C1107AAZ, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Author contributions: Romeo HE and Barreiro Arcos ML compiled the updated information, wrote the manuscript and prepared the figures.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: María Laura Barreiro Arcos, PhD, Research Scientist, School of Engineering and Agrarian Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, Institute of Biomedical Research (BIOMED-UCA-CONICET), Av. Alicia Moreau de Justo 1600, CABA C1107AZZ, Buenos Aires, Argentina. mlbarreiro@yahoo.com.ar
Received: January 31, 2023 Peer-review started: January 31, 2023 First decision: February 10, 2023 Revised: March 18, 2023 Accepted: May 8, 2023 Article in press: May 8, 2023 Published online: June 26, 2023
Abstract
Lung cancer is the major cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, it has one of the lowest 5-year survival rate, mainly because it is diagnosed in the late stage of the disease. Lung cancer is classified into two groups, small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-SCLC (NSCLC). In turn, NSCLC is categorized into three distinct cell subtypes: Adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and large cell carcinoma. NSCLC is the most common lung cancer, accounting for 85% of all lung cancers. Treatment for lung cancer is linked to the cell type and stage of the disease, involving chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery. Despite improvements in therapeutic treatments, lung cancer patients show high rates of recurrence, metastasis, and resistance to chemotherapy. Lung stem cells (SCs) are undifferentiated cells capable of self-renewal and proliferation, are resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy and, due to their properties, could be involved in the development and progression of lung cancer. The presence of SCs in the lung tissue could be the reason why lung cancer is difficult to treat. The identification of lung cancer stem cells biomarkers is of interest for precision medicine using new therapeutic agents directed against these cell populations. In this review, we present the current knowledge on lung SCs and discuss their functional role in the initiation and progression of lung cancer, as well as their role in tumor resistance to chemotherapy.
Core Tip: Lung cancer stem cells (CSCs) could have a functional role in primary tumor initiation, invasion and metastasis, resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs, and recurrence in lung cancer. To improve lung cancer treatments, it is necessary to identify and characterize CSCs populations in lung tissue and develop targeted therapies against these cell types. This review discusses the current knowledge on CSCs in lung tissue and future perspectives in lung cancer treatment.
