Identification and Characterization of Cancer Cells That Initiate Metastases to the Brain and Other Organs.

Specific biological properties of those circulating cancer cells that are the origin of brain metastases (BM) are not well understood. Here, single circulating breast cancer cells were fate-tracked during all steps of the brain metastatic cascade in mice after intracardial injection over weeks. A novel two-photon microscopy methodology was developed that allowed to determine the specific cellular and molecular features of breast cancer cells that homed in the brain, extravasated, and successfully established a brain macrometastasis.