Final answer:
Metastatic cells require several steps to colonize a new location, including invasion and intravasation, arrest and extravasation, adaptation to the new microenvironment, and immune evasion. Metastasis is a complex process influenced by organ-specific preferences and a multitude of other factors.
Step-by-step explanation:
Factors Required for Metastatic Cells to Colonize a New Location
The process through which cancer cells spread to different parts of the body is known as metastasis, and the new cancers that develop are termed metastases. Metastatic cells require several steps for successful colonization of a new location:
- Invasion and Intravasation: This involves the cancer cells gaining the ability to invade neighboring tissues—a defining property of invasive carcinoma. They produce abnormal cell surface glycoproteins which facilitate their separation from the parent tissue and migration through the extracellular matrix and into the bloodstream.
- Arrest and Extravasation: Once in the bloodstream, cancer cells can travel to distant sites and arrest in the microvasculature. They then extravasate, or exit the bloodstream, to enter the surrounding tissue.
- Microenvironment Adaptation: Successful colonization requires that metastatic cells adapt to the new tissue's microenvironment. They may need to respond to different growth signals and interact with the local extracellular matrix to proliferate.
- Immune Evasion: Cancer cells often develop mechanisms to evade the immune system, which is necessary for establishing metastases at distant sites without being destroyed by the host's immune defences.
Metastatic potential is also influenced by the organ tropism of cancer cells, meaning that certain cancers have a tendency to metastasize to particular organs such as the brain, lungs, bones, or liver. In all cases, a complex interplay of genetic, environmental, and cellular factors determines metastatic success.