Fibronectin (FN) is a large glycoprotein that plays a diverse set of biological roles. This chapter discusses the structural biology, the normal biological functions, and the molecular role of FN and its splice variants in cancer cell proliferation, metastasis, and chemoresistance. The potential role of FN in cancer imaging is discussed in detail. The chapter also discusses the future directions of basic and translational research of fibronectin in the context of the tumor microenvironment and its role in tumor biology.
Keywords: Cancer; Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition; Extracellular matrix; Extradomain A fibronectin; Extradomain B fibronectin; Fibroblasts; Fibronectin; Imaging; Integrin; Metastasis; Prognosis; Splice variants; Tumor microenvironment; Wound healing.