Table 1.

Advantages and disadvantages of strategies to de-densify ECM.

	Advantages	Disadvantages	Ref.
Targeting collagen	1.Low toxicity and side effects. 2.Collagen-specific treatment strategies may prevent tumor metastasis and progression.	1.Potential for drug resistance. 2.The complexity in the ECM composition and structure, and the presence of intratumor heterogeneity limit targeted therapy for ECM.	[131] [132] [102]
Degrading ECM	Deactivating the pro-tumorigenic function of ECM after degradation via proteases.	1.Enzyme usage may trigger immune reactions. 2.Extensive ECM degradation might destabilize the tumor structure to induce metastasis.	[133] [134] [135] [107] [108]
ECM remodeling	1.Inhibiting the expression of proteins in a variety of pathways leads to a reduction in the metastatic potential of cancer cells, thus blocking metastasis and inhibiting tumor progression. 2.Tumor pathway inhibitors can be used in combination with other agents to achieve better anti-tumor effects.	1.Cancer metastasis is tissue-specific, and complex intervention measures are required. 2 .Unpredictable effects, such as immune suppression. 3.More clinical trials specifically on ECM remodeling events are needed.	[119] [120] [126] [127]