Ovarian Cancer: Why a Small Cell Pool Determines Whether the Cancer Recurs

Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynecological malignancy, and the reason for this lies less in the initial response to treatment than in the almost universal recurrence. A recent review from Hong Kong summarizes what is known about ovarian tumor stem cells—that rare and highly plastic subpopulation believed to be responsible for tumor initiation, peritoneal seeding, chemoresistance, and recurrence. The study is also worth reading because it explicitly identifies the limitations of the concept: The commonly used markers are enrichment tools rather than proof of identity, and clinical trials to date on stem cell-targeted agents have largely yielded negative results.