GPER is involved in the functional liaison between breast tumor cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs)

Abstract

The aggressiveness of breast tumors is deeply influenced by the surrounding stroma. In this regard, the functional crosstalk between cancer cells and the tumor microenvironment has received considerable attention in recent years. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are active components of the tumor stroma as they play a main role in the initiation, progression, metastasis and recurrence of breast malignancy. Hence, a better understanding of the mechanisms through which host stroma may contribute to cancer development would lead to novel therapeutic approaches aimed to target both tumor cells and the adjacent microenvironment. The G protein estrogen receptor (GPER/GPR30) has been involved in estrogenic signaling in normal and malignant cells, including breast cancer. It is noteworthy that the potential of GPER to mediate stimulatory effects of estrogens has been also shown in CAFs derived from patients with breast tumors, suggesting that GPER may act at the cross-road between cancer cells and these important components of the tumor microenvironment. This review recapitulates recent findings underlying the breast tumor-promoting action of CAFs, in particular their functional liaison with breast cancer cells via GPER toward the occurrence of malignant features.