Cancer Cells Don't Live Alone: Metabolic Communication within Tumor Microenvironments

Abstract

Solid tumors reside in harsh tumor microenvironments (TMEs) together with various stromal cell types. During tumor progression and metastasis, both tumor and stromal cells undergo rapid metabolic adaptations. Tumor cells metabolically coordinate or compete with their "neighbors" to maintain biosynthetic and bioenergetic demands while escaping immunosurveillance or therapeutic interventions. Here, we provide an update on metabolic communication between tumor cells and heterogeneous stromal components in primary and metastatic TMEs and discuss emerging strategies to target metabolic communications for improved cancer treatments.

Keywords: antitumor immunity; combination therapy; immunomodulation; metabolic communication; metabolic symbiosis; metabolism; metastasis; nutrient competition; signaling molecule; stromal cells; tumor microenvironment.