The Role of Cancer Cell Protein Lysis in Inducing Dental Pulp Stem Cells to Differentiate into Carcinoma-Like Cells: Uncovering a Novel Pathway for Tumor Metastasis

Tumor metastasis remains the leading cause of mortality in cancer patients, including those with breast cancer, and its underlying mechanisms are still not fully elucidated. Emerging evidence indicates that cancer-derived systemic factors can modulate the behavior of normal stem cells, thereby contributing to metastatic progression. Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs), a subtype of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) with high proliferative capacity and multipotential differentiation, are readily accessible from dental pulp tissue and exhibit systemic distribution potential, making them ideal candidates for studying stem cell-cancer cell interactions. This review summarizes the current understanding of DPSCs’ biological characteristics, the role of cancer cell-derived factors (especially lysed proteins) in regulating stem cell malignant transformation, and the clinical implications of this interaction in tumor metastasis. We focus on the induction of DPSCs into carcinoma-like cells by breast cancer cell lysates, the expression patterns of key cancer-related markers (ER, PR, HER-2, COX-2) in this process, and the potential molecular mechanisms involved. Additionally, we discuss the limitations of existing studies, controversies in the field, and future research directions aimed at translating these findings into novel anti-metastatic therapies. This review provides a comprehensive overview of a novel pathway linking cancer cell protein lysis to stem cell malignant transformation, offering new insights for the development of strategies to prevent tumor recurrence and metastasis.