Balancing instability: dual roles for telomerase and telomere dysfunction in tumorigenesis
- 21 January 2002
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Springer Nature in Oncogene
- Vol. 21 (4), 619-626
- https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.onc.1205061
Abstract
Telomere shortening and telomerase activation both occur in human tumors. Telomere shortening has been proposed to have two conflicting roles in tumorigenesis: tumor suppression and initiation of chromosomal instability. Similarly, while telomerase activation is suggested to be necessary for tumor growth, telomerase may help to stabilize genomic instability. Here we review what is known about these conflicting roles and propose a framework to understand the role of telomerase in cancer progression.Keywords
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