Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

A Role For Adipocytes And Adipose Stem Cells In The Breast Tumor Microenvironment And Regenerative Medicine, Courtney K. Brock, Katherine L. Hebert, Maria Artiles, Maryl K. Wright, Thomas Cheng, Gabrielle O. Windsor, Khoa Nguyen, Madlin S. Alzoubi, Bridgette M. Collins-Burow, Elizabeth C. Martin, Frank H. Lau, Bruce A. Bunnell, Matthew E. Burow

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Obesity rates are climbing, representing a confounding and contributing factor to many disease states, including cancer. With respect to breast cancer, obesity plays a prominent role in the etiology of this disease, with certain subtypes such as triple-negative breast cancer having a strong correlation between obesity and poor outcomes. Therefore, it is critical to examine the obesity-related alterations to the normal stroma and the tumor microenvironment (TME). Adipocytes and adipose stem cells (ASCs) are major components of breast tissue stroma that have essential functions in both physiological and pathological states, including energy storage and metabolic homeostasis, physical support of breast …