How Do Cancer Cells Achieve Sustained Proliferative Signaling?
Cancer cells employ various strategies to maintain continuous proliferative signaling:
Autocrine Signaling: Cancer cells can produce their own growth signals, effectively bypassing the need for external stimulation. Paracrine Signaling: They can influence nearby cells to secrete growth factors that, in turn, stimulate their own growth. Receptor Overexpression: Overexpression of growth factor receptors on the cell surface makes cancer cells hypersensitive to even low levels of growth signals. Mutation in Signaling Pathways: Mutations in genes encoding for components of growth signaling pathways (e.g., RAS, PI3K) can result in their constant activation.
