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How cancer spreads through the body

Video Transcript

Carcinogenesis: How cancer spreads through the body - Animation

In order for a tumor to spread to distant sites, cancer cells must detach from the original tumor, pass into the circulation, enter into distant tissues, survive and grow in their new microenvironment. In each of these steps, the cancer cells face new challenges, which they need to cope with by acquiring new properties. The most difficult barriers to metastasis are the escape from a primary tumor and the colonization in a foreign tissue. Traveling through the circulation is relatively easy in comparison.

Review Date: 5/30/2018

Reviewed By

Todd Gersten, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, Wellington, FL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team. Editorial update on 01-07-2020.

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