Targeting Gastric Cancer Stem Cells to Enhance Treatment Response

Cells. 2022 Sep 10;11(18):2828. doi: 10.3390/cells11182828.

Abstract

Gastric cancer (GC) was the fourth deadliest cancer in the world in 2020, and about 770,000 people died from GC that year. The death of patients with GC is mainly caused by the metastasis, recurrence, and chemotherapy resistance of GC cells. The cancer stem cell theory defines cancer stem cells (CSCs) as a key factor in the metastasis, recurrence, and chemotherapy resistance of cancer. It considers targeting gastric cancer stem cells (GCSCs) to be an effective method for the treatment of GC. For GCSCs, genes or noncoding RNAs are important regulatory factors. Many experimental studies have found that some drugs can target the stemness of gastric cancer by regulating these genes or noncoding RNAs, which may bring new directions for the clinical treatment of gastric cancer. Therefore, this review mainly discusses related genes or noncoding RNAs in GCSCs and drugs that target its stemness, thereby providing some information for the treatment of GC.

Keywords: gastric cancer stem cells; treatment.

Publication types

  • Review
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic
  • Humans
  • Neoplastic Stem Cells / pathology
  • Stomach Neoplasms* / drug therapy
  • Stomach Neoplasms* / genetics
  • Stomach Neoplasms* / pathology

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the public health scientific research project of Futian District, Shenzhen (NO. FTWS2020011), Special Fund for Outstanding Youth Reserve Talent Program of the Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University (FBJQ2019006), and Research Initiation Fund of the Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University (GCC RCY J011).