Abstract
The discovery that tumor vasculature has a molecular profile distinct from normal resting vessels identified tumor vasculature as an important new clinical target. Two recent large studies profiling ovarian cancer vasculature make ovarian tumor vascular cells the best characterized to date. Tumor vascular-specific antigens have the potential to act as biomarkers for cancer screening and diagnosis, bio-imaging, and targeted therapy. We will review the current studies of tumor vascular proteins as targets for cancer diagnosis and therapy. We will focus not only on tumor endothelial cells but also vascular leukocytes, a novel population of myeloid cells abundant in ovarian cancer and critical for tumor angiogenesis.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.