Figure 3.

Targeting CAF without ablation or apoptosis induction. Activated CAF fuel desmoplasia, fibrosis, inflammation and tumor growth. To prevent or suppress the activation and formation of the desmoplastic reaction, strategies such as targeting upstream signaling pathways for CAF activation or reprogramming of activated CAF into a quiescent phenotype have been trialed. Another strategy is to target fibrosis directly with enzymatic breakdown of the ECM.