Gastric cancer stem cells: A novel therapeutic target

•Gastric cancer is one of the leading causes of global cancer mortality.•Several environmental and genetic factors promote gastric cancer.•Gastric stem cells play an import role in the self-renewal and homeostasis of the gastric gland.•Gastric cancer originates from normal resident stem cells or bone marrow-derived cells.•Targeting gastric cancer stem cells would be novel therapeutic strategies to cure gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer remains one of the leading causes of global cancer mortality. Multipotent gastric stem cells have been identified in both mouse and human stomachs, and they play an essential role in the self-renewal and homeostasis of gastric mucosa. There are several environmental and genetic factors known to promote gastric cancer. In recent years, numerous in vitro and in vivo studies suggest that gastric cancer may originate from normal stem cells or bone marrow-derived mesenchymal cells, and that gastric tumors contain cancer stem cells. Cancer stem cells are believed to share a common microenvironment with normal niche, which play an important role in gastric cancer and tumor growth. This mini-review presents a brief overview of the recent developments in gastric cancer stem cell research. The knowledge gained by studying cancer stem cells in gastric mucosa will support the development of novel therapeutic strategies for gastric cancer.