Figure 2. The therapeutic promise of CSC-directed targeting strategies.

A number of therapeutic strategies directed at CSCs are beginning to be experimentally validated. These approaches could potentially enhance responsiveness to current anticancer treatment regimens and might reduce the risk of relapse and dissemination. The approaches include ablation using antitumor agents that target prospective markers of CSCs (e.g., monoclonal antibodies and activated immune cells); reversal of chemo- or radioresistance mechanisms operative in CSC; CSC pathway interference; differentiation therapy; disruption of protumorigenic CSC-microenvironment interactions; antiangiogenic or antivasculogenic therapy; and disruption of immunoevasion pathways.