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In some cancers, such as breast cancer and melanoma, tumor cells can leave the primary tumor site early in the tumor’s formation and colonize new tissues, where they may receive molecular signals from surrounding cells, known as the niche, that keep them dormant for long periods. Mutations in the cancer cells themselves or changes to the niche may later awake these dormant cells, enabling them to proliferate and form metastatic tumors.
 | Dissemination: In some cancers, including breast cancer, cancer cells can move away from the site of the primary tumor very early in the progression of the disease, before doctors can even detect a primary tumor. | |
 | Dormancy: It’s thought that most of these cells die, but a few disseminated cancer cells survive the bloodstream. These cells may already have mutations needed to colonize a new niche, such as the lungs, or they may adapt... | |
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