Fig. 10

Proposed model of integrin mediated ovarian cancer metastasis regulated by Oct4A. A population of Oct4A-expressing tumor cells which disseminate directly into the peritoneal cavity are capable of surviving traditional combination therapy consisting of cisplatin (or carboplatin) and paclitaxel. These cells are able to regulate the expression of a range of integrin cell surface receptors. This promotes the formation of multicellular tumor aggregates (spheres) and assists tumor cells to directly adhere, invade and migrate at a metastatic site thus initiating secondary/recurrent disease