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Epigenetics and Mathematics Combine to Predict Cancer Cells’ Behavior
Researchers published a study “Epigenetics as a mediator of plasticity in cancer” in Science that they say addresses new quantitative approaches to better define and measure epigenetic defects in gene function and their interplay with the genetic landscape of cancer.
In cancer development, epigenetic changes promote phenotypic plasticity, the continued change in tumor cell behavior that helps cancer invade surrounding tissue, metastasize to other organs and evade natural defenses ( such as the immune response) and chemotherapy. In cancer, this plasticity highlights the malignant cell’s ability to change states to invade other cells and tissue throughout the body and to maintain survival.
