Cancer-Associated Fibroblast-Derived Molecular Cues Driving Epithelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Invasion in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Systematic Review

Introduction

Local invasion and nodal metastasis are the main determinants of poor survival in “oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs)” are increasingly recognized as instructive stromal cells that confer epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity to tumor cells, but the molecular cues involved have not been systematically evaluated for OSCC.

Objectives

To identify and synthesize primary evidence on CAF-derived molecular cues regulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and invasion in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and to map their prognostic and translational relevance.

Methods