ArticleEMBO molecular medicine2020
Cancer-associated fibroblasts: activin A adds another string to their bow.
Article in EMBO molecular medicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- Fibroblasts in Scar Formation: Biology and Clinical Translation.Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity · 2022Pooled it
- Cancer immunoediting in the melanoma tumor microenvironment: from immune elimination to therapeutic resistance.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Desmoplastic reaction in the microenvironment of head and neck and other solid tumors: the therapeutic barrier.Therapeutic advances in medical oncology · 2025Review
- Oncogenic KRAS, Mucin 4, and Activin A-Mediated Fibroblast Activation Cooperate for PanIN Initiation.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2023Article
- Data-driven analysis to identify prognostic immune-related biomarkers in BRAF mutated cutaneous melanoma microenvironment.Frontiers in genetics · 2022Article
- The Dual Effect of the BMP9-ALK1 Pathway in Blood Vessels: An Opportunity for Cancer Therapy Improvement?Cancers · 2021Review
- Review
- CD36 and CD97 in Pancreatic Cancer versus Other Malignancies.International journal of molecular sciences · 2020Review
- Cancer-associated fibroblasts: activin A adds another string to their bow.EMBO molecular medicine · 2020Article
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) is characterized by a strong desmoplastic reaction, largely responsible for cancer aggressiveness. Within the tumour microenvironment, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) play a key role in tumour progression, secretion of extracellular matrix proteins and recruitment of immunosuppressive cells. However, pathways involved in acquisition of CAF phenotype remain unclear. In this issue of EMBO Molecular Medicine, Cangkrama et al describe a new mechanism of fibroblast activation in squamous cell carcinoma. Cancer cell-secreted activin A induces a tumour-promoting phenotype in the fibroblast compartment, with distinct properties compared to TGF-β-activated fibroblasts. Activin A reprograms fibroblasts through transcriptional regulation of mDia2 and reduction of nuclear p53, which favours CAF marker expression, and increases tumour growth and migration. Inhibition of this pathway shows promising results in different models and could offer a new therapeutic strategy in NMSC.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.