Researchers in China have discovered that bacteria promote cancer metastasis by bolstering the strength of host cells against mechanical stress in the bloodstream, promoting cell survival during tumor progression.

Investigators at KU Leuven have discovered that although mTOR signaling was important in primary breast tumors and lung metastases alike, the signals that activated mTOR were different between the two, and mTOR signaling could be inhibited through different mechanisms.

Researchers working at the Jackson Laboratory Cancer Center reported in the September 21, 2020, issue of Nature Immunology that breast cancer cells induced neutrophils to accumulate lipids, which were transported to metastatic tumor cells through a macropinocytosis pathway, thus fueling the metastatic potential of tumor cells with lipids.

The European Society for Medical Oncology is slanted toward clinical medicine, and plenary sessions at the ESMO Virtual Congress 2020 featured phase III trials on approved drugs. But there were smaller sessions devoted to basic science as well. At one of those sessions, several researchers shared new insights into metastasis.

Investigators at Weill Cornell Medical College have demonstrated that mitochondrial DNA drives the abscopal antitumor response to radiation, which can be boosted by autophagy inhibition.

The abscopal response is an immune-based antitumor response to distant metastases after selective irradiation of the primary tumor.