Aberrant expression of collagen type X in solid tumor stroma is associated with EMT, immunosuppressive and pro-metastatic pathways, bone marrow stromal cell signatures, and poor survival prognosis.

Background: Collagen type X (ColXα1, encoded by ) is expressed specifically in the cartilage-to-bone transition, in bone marrow cells, and in osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage. We have previously shown that ColXα1 is expressed in breast tumor stroma, correlates with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, and predicts poor adjuvant therapy outcomes in ER/HER2 breast cancer. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms for these effects are unknown.