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Review
. 2022 Jun 23:12:909767.
doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.909767. eCollection 2022.

Tumor Cell-Induced Platelet Aggregation as an Emerging Therapeutic Target for Cancer Therapy

Wiktoria Strasenburg  1 , Jakub Jóźwicki  1 , Justyna Durślewicz  1 , Błażej Kuffel  2 , Martyna Parol Kulczyk  1 , Adam Kowalewski  1 , Dariusz Grzanka  1 , Tomasz Drewa  2 , Jan Adamowicz  2
Affiliations
Review

Tumor Cell-Induced Platelet Aggregation as an Emerging Therapeutic Target for Cancer Therapy

Wiktoria Strasenburg et al. Front Oncol. .

Abstract

Tumor cells have the ability to induce platelet activation and aggregation. This has been documented to be involved in tumor progression in several types of cancers, such as lung, colon, breast, pancreatic, ovarian, and brain. During the process, platelets protect circulating tumor cells from the deleterious effects of shear forces, shield tumor cells from the immune system, and provide growth factors, facilitating metastatic spread and tumor growth at the original site as well as at the site of metastasis. Herein, we present a wider view on the induction of platelet aggregation by specific factors primarily developed by cancer, including coagulation factors, adhesion receptors, growth factors, cysteine proteases, matrix metalloproteinases, glycoproteins, soluble mediators, and selectins. These factors may be presented on the surface of tumor cells as well as in their microenvironment, and some may trigger more than just one simple receptor-ligand mechanism. For a better understanding, we briefly discuss the physiological role of the factors in the platelet activation process, and subsequently, we provide scientific evidence and discuss their potential role in the progression of specific cancers. Targeting tumor cell-induced platelet aggregation (TCIPA) by antiplatelet drugs may open ways to develop new treatment modalities. On the one hand, it may affect patients' prognosis by enhancing known therapies in advanced-stage tumors. On the other hand, the use of drugs that are mostly easily accessible and widely used in general practice may be an opportunity to propose an unparalleled antitumor prophylaxis. In this review, we present the recent discoveries of mechanisms by which cancer cells activate platelets, and discuss new platelet-targeted therapeutic strategies.

Keywords: TCIPA; activation; aggregation; cancer; platelets.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic of the different mechanisms of TCIPA. Figure created using https://www.canva.com/.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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