Prostate cancer bone metastasis is the lethal progression of the disease. The disease frequently presents with osteoblastic lesions in bone. The tumor-induced bone can cause complications that significantly hamper the quality of life of patients. A better understanding of how prostate cancer induces aberrant bone formation and how the aberrant bone affects the progression and treatment of the disease may improve the therapies for this disease.
Prostate cancer-induced bone was shown to enhance tumor growth and confer therapeutic resistance in bone metastasis. Clinically, Radium-223, an alpha emitter that selectively targets bone, was shown to improve overall survival in patients, supporting a role of tumor-induced bone in prostate cancer progression in bone. Recently, it was discovered that PCa-induced aberrant bone formation is due, in part, from tumor-associated endothelial cells that were converted into osteoblasts through endothelial-to-osteoblast (EC-to-OSB) conversion by tumor-secreted BMP4. The unique bone-forming phenotype of prostate cancer bone metastasis plays a role in prostate cancer progression in bone and therapy resistance. Therapies that incorporate targeting the tumor-induced osteoblasts or EC-to-OSB conversion mechanism may reduce tumor-induced bone formation and improve therapy outcomes.
Current osteoporosis reports. 2018 Sep 10 [Epub ahead of print]
Song-Chang Lin, Li-Yuan Yu-Lee, Sue-Hwa Lin
Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX, 77030, USA. ., Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA., Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX, 77030, USA.