Immunohistochemical Expression of Cortactin and Focal Adhesion Kinase Predicts Recurrence Risk and Laryngeal Cancer Risk Beyond Histologic Grading.

Cortactin () and the focal adhesion kinase () are two major candidate genes to, respectively, drive 11q13- and 8q24-associated aggressive behavior in various cancers. Recent evidence uncovered their clinical relevance in early stages of tumorigenesis as promising biomarkers for cancer risk assessment. Using a multicenter validation study, CTTN and FAK expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in a cohort of 109 patients with laryngeal precancerous lesions, and correlated with clinicopathologic parameters and laryngeal cancer risk.

Analysis of Invasive Activity of CAF Spheroids into Three Dimensional (3D) Collagen Matrices.

Tumor growth and progression is the result of a complex process controlled not only by malignant cancer cells but also by the surrounding tumor microenvironment (TME). Cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), the most abundant cellular component of TME, play an active role in tumor invasion and metastasis by promoting cancer cell invasion through cell-cell interactions and secretion of pro-invasive factors such as extracellular matrix (ECM)-degrading proteases. Due to their tumor-promoting activities, there is an emerging interest in investigating CAFs biology and its potential as drug targets for cancer therapies.