Summary
Cancer becomes life-threatening when tumor cells spread from the original tumor to other parts of the body. This spreading process depends not only on the cancer cells themselves, but also on the surrounding tissue called the extracellular matrix (ECM). The ECM provides physical support to cells. The structure and mechanical properties of ECM change with age and with diseases such as diabetes. These changes in ECM may make it easier for tumor cells to spread into healthy tissue, but the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. This project will study how aging- and diabetes-related chang
