New insights from the widening homogeneity perspective to target intratumor heterogeneity

Abstract

Abstract Precision medicine has shed new light on the treatment of heterogeneous cancer patients. However, intratumor heterogeneity strongly constrains the clinical benefit of precision medicine. Thus, rethinking therapeutic strategies from a different facet within the precision medicine framework will not only diversify clinical interventions, but also provide an avenue for precision medicine. Here, we explore the current approaches for targeting intratumor heterogeneity and their limitations. Furthermore, we propose a theoretical strategy with a “homogenization” feature based on iatrogenic evolutionary selection to target intratumor heterogeneity.

Keywords

• Acquired drug resistance
• Homogenization
• Intratumor heterogeneity
• Plasticity
• Precision medicine