Tumor cell dormancy: Molecular mechanisms, and pharmacological approaches to target dormant cells for countering tumor

Abstract

Advancements in oncology have resulted in significant improvement in clinical outputs for cancer patients. However, Cancer recurrence after initial therapeutic response remains a significant issue since it frequently represents more virulent, metastatic illness. The presence of dormant tumor cells has been linked to recurrence, metastasis, and a worse clinical prognosis, implying that dormant cells likely serve a key part in the disease relapse process. Dormancy is acquired by cancer cells to survive in a stressed microenvironment with resistance to chemotherapy having the potential to escape immune response and develop metastasis. A wide range of factors can induce or reverse tumor cell dormancy, which manifests as growth arrest while sustaining proliferative potential. Traditional therapies predominantly target rapidly dividing cells, leaving dormant tumor cells mostly unaffected. Therefore, a deep understanding of mechanisms responsible for the induction of tumor cell dormancy and activation of dormant cells is required to develop pharmacological approaches to target tumor dormant cells. Then, we look at the current pharmacological methodologies for (i) keeping cancer cells in a harmless state of dormancy, (ii) reactivating dormant cells to make them more susceptible to anti-propagative drugs, and (iii) eliminating dormant tumor cells. The emergence of new therapeutic strategies to eradicate these dormant tumor cells will be critical in reducing metastatic relapse-related death in a variety of cancers.