Roles of Polyploid/Multinucleated Giant Cancer Cells in Metastasis and Disease Relapse Following Anticancer Treatment

Abstract excerpt

Tumors and tumor-derived cell lines contain polyploid giant cells with significantly elevated genomic content, often with multiple nuclei. The frequency of giant cells can increase markedly following anticancer treatment. Although giant cells enter a dormant phase and therefore do not form macroscopic colonies (aggregates of ≥50 cells) in the conventional in vitro colony formation assay, they remain viable and...