{"entity":{"id":"paper-nia-science","kind":"paper","name":"Physical traits of cancer","aka":[],"tldr":"Paper cited by one term page, indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 33122355 and published in Science; the citing page links this DOI, which is how the record was matched.","summary":"The role of the physical microenvironment in tumor development, progression, metastasis, and treatment is gaining appreciation. The emerging multidisciplinary field of the physical sciences of cancer is now embraced by engineers, physicists, cell biologists, developmental biologists, tumor biologists, and oncologists attempting to understand how physical parameters and processes affect cancer progression and treatment. Discoveries in this field are starting to be translated into new therapeutic strategies for cancer. In this Review, we propose four physical traits of tumors that contribute to tumor progression and treatment resistance: (i) elevated solid stresses (compression and tension), (ii) elevated interstitial fluid pressure, (iii) altered material properties (for example, increased tissue stiffness, which historically has been used to detect cancer by palpation), and (iv) altered physical microarchitecture. After defining these physical traits, we discuss their causes, consequences, and how they complement the biological hallmarks of cancer.\n\nIndexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 33122355 (DOI 10.1126/science.aaz0868). Matched by DOI alone: one term page cites this DOI among its external links (the pages are listed under Related), and this page was written so that the citation resolves inside OnCo. No figure has been checked by an editor.","asOf":"2026-09-22","links":[{"label":"Science 2020","url":"https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaz0868"},{"label":"PubMed","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33122355/"},{"label":"Europe PMC","url":"https://europepmc.org/article/MED/33122355"}],"tags":["europepmc-ingest"],"related":["mechanical-theory-of-cancer"],"cancers":[],"sections":[],"technologies":[],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":["science"],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"journal":"Science","year":2020,"doi":"10.1126/science.aaz0868","pmid":"33122355","authors":"Nia HT, Munn LL, Jain RK","paperType":"review","findings":[],"whatItMeans":"One term page on OnCo cites this paper by its DOI; this record gives the citation a page of its own so a reader can follow it without leaving OnCo. Read the abstract above alongside the citing page listed under Related; the record was created automatically from the Europe PMC entry and its figures have not been checked by hand.","caveats":["Matched to the citing OnCo records by DOI alone; the summary reproduces the Europe PMC abstract and no figure has been verified against the full paper."]},"route":"/key-papers/paper-nia-science/","neighbours":{"term":[{"id":"mechanical-theory-of-cancer","kind":"term","name":"Mechanical theory: stiffness, pressure and force as causes","route":"/terms/mechanical-theory-of-cancer/"}],"journal":[{"id":"science","kind":"journal","name":"Science","route":"/journals/science/"}]}}