The role of mast cells in oral squamos cell carcinoma

Abstract

The mast cell is a connective tissue cell that has an active role in inflammation, immune modulation, angiogenesis, and more. Apart from its degranulation in allergic reaction, it is associated with "piece meal degranulation", i.e., a selective cellular secretion pathway that aggravates the progression of oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD) to oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) through angiogenic switch. Angiogenic factor released by mast cells ensures survival and progressive capacity. The tumor microenvironment (TME) is composed of many different cell populations, such as tumor-associated mast cells and various infiltrating immune cells and non-cellular components of the extracellular matrix. These crucial parts of the surrounding stroma can function as both positive and negative regulators of all the hallmarks of cancer development, including induction of angiogenesis and activation of invasion and metastasis. This review will focus on describing the role of mast cells in the tumor microenvironment and the dissection of cancer, especially oral squamous cell carcinoma.