Translocation of intracellular CD24 constitutes a triggering event for drug resistance in breast cancer.

The capacity of tumor cells to shift dynamically between different states could be responsible for chemoresistance and has been commonly linked to the acquisition of stem cell properties. Here, we have evaluated the phenotype switching associated with drug resistance in breast cancer cell lines and cell lineage obtained from Brazilian patients. We have highlighted the role of the cancer stem cell marker CD24 in the dynamics of cell plasticity and the acquirement of drug resistance.