Selectin independent adhesion during metastases of ovarian cancer

Tumor cell extravasation takes place, similar to leukocytes, in a multi-step process by which cells emigrate from the blood stream through the vascular endothelium into the tissue. Selectins are regarded as the most important molecules for the first capturing step of the cascade. Whether all tumor cells employ selectin dependent adhesion to metastasize or there is an alternative mechanism still is an open question.

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