Guest Editor(s)
Assist. Prof. Daochun Sun
Email: dsun@mcw.edu
Affiliation: Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology, and Anatomy, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, United States
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Research Interests: cell of origin, tumor heterogeneity, crosstalk in tumor microenvironment, cancer stem cells, drug discovery
Summary
Despite the clinical success of molecularly targeted agents, therapeutic resistance inevitably emerges as a primary barrier to durable remissions, driven by the profound adaptability of malignant cells. This Special Issue explores the intersection of two critical pillars of adaptive survival: intratumoral heterogeneity and metabolic remodeling. While genetic and non-genetic clonal diversity ensures that resistant sub-populations are primed to expand under selective therapeutic pressure, rapid metabolic rewiring dynamically sustains cell viability within fluctuating tumor microenvironments. Unraveling how these biological forces cooperatively neutralize targeted therapies is essential for designing next-generation therapeutic protocols. Beyond uncovering fundamental mechanisms of resistance, this issue emphasizes innovative translational solutions. We welcome innovative approaches to overcoming these barriers, including the identification of novel biomarkers, the development of synergistic combination regimens, and the deployment of advanced drug delivery platforms designed to exploit metabolic vulnerabilities or uniformly penetrate complex tumor architectures. We invite original research articles, methodology papers, and comprehensive reviews that investigate clonal evolution during treatment, characterize metabolic shifts in resistant phenotypes, or pioneer novel therapeutic delivery systems capable of circumventing biological barriers. By bridging basic tumor biology with innovative pharmaceutical engineering, this collection aims to redefine strategies for overcoming drug resistance in advanced cancer care.
Keywords
targeted cancer therapy, tumor heterogeneity, metabolic remodeling, drug resistance mechanisms, translational oncology, advanced drug delivery
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