Part 2: Dynamics of Tumor Growth and Metastasis

Single cancer cells have their own intrinsic properties, but their success depends also on how they interact with surrounding tissues and are able to adapt to changing environments. Understanding these complex relationships enables us to understand cancer growth, spread and ultimately, its evolutionary success.

TLDR: A tumor is not a uniform mass of cancer cells, but a dynamic and evolving ecosystem. Malignant cells interact continuously with immune, stromal, and vascular populations, shaping growth, immune evasion, plasticity, and metastatic potential. These interactions unfold unevenly across cells and clones, generating diverse transcriptional states within the same tumor. Single cell RNA sequencing reveals this hidden organization, mapping cell-type-specific programs, communication networks, and evolutionary trajectories that drive tumor progression and spread. This unit introduces the cellular dynamics that govern tumor growth and metastasis and links to deeper explorations of each underlying mechanism.