Squamous epithelia form the lining surface of tissues in contact with the environment: the skin, oral mucosa, esophagus and respiratory tract, the genital tract, and several other specialized tissues. These tissues are at highest risk for exposure to environmental carcinogens such as UV, tobacco smoke and infectious agents. Cancers that form in squamous epithelia are among the most common human solid tumors and have high morbidity and mortality. These cancers include squamous cell carcinoma of the skin, oral cancer, head and neck and esophageal cancer, certain lung cancers and cervical cancer. We propose to organize the book so that the early chapters will focus on individual pathways and more specific mechanisms in both normal function and cancer, while the later chapters will be more integrative and include overviews of biomarkers and therapeutic development. This should increase interest for clinically oriented researchers. All authors will be encouraged to provide a balanced review in addition to highlighting their own work.

One of the most exciting areas of cancer research now is the development of agents which can target signal transduction pathways that are activated inappropriately in malignant cells. The understanding of the molecular abnormalities which distinguish malignant cells from their normal counterparts has grown tremendously. This volume summarizes the current research on the role that signal transduction pathways play in the pathogenesis of cancer and how this knowledge may be used to develop the next generation of more effective and less toxic anticancer agents. Series Editor comments: "The biologic behavior of both normal and cancer cells is determined by critical signal transduction pathways. This text provides a comprehensive review of the field. Leading investigators discuss key molecules that may prove to be important diagnostic and/or therapeutic targets."

Tumor progression is driven by mutations that confer growth advantages to different subpopulations of cancer cells. As a tumor grows, these subpopulations expand, accumulate new mutations, and are subjected to selective pressures from the environment, including anticancer interventions. This process, termed clonal evolution, can lead to the emergence of therapy-resistant tumors and poses a major challenge for cancer eradication efforts. Written and edited by experts in the field, this collection from Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine examines cancer progression as an evolutionary process and explores how this way of looking at cancer may lead to more effective strategies for managing and treating it. The contributors review efforts to characterize the subclonal architecture and dynamics of tumors, understand the roles of chromosomal instability, driver mutations, and mutation order, and determine how cancer cells respond to selective pressures imposed by anticancer agents, immune cells, and other components of the tumor microenvironment. They compare cancer evolution to organismal evolution and describe how ecological theories and mathematical models are being used to understand the complex dynamics between a tumor and its microenvironment during cancer progression. The authors also discuss improved methods to monitor tumor evolution (e.g., liquid biopsies) and the development of more effective strategies for managing and treating cancers (e.g., immunotherapies). This volume will therefore serve as a vital reference for all cancer biologists as well as anyone seeking to improve clinical outcomes for patients with cancer.

In recent years, increasing evidence has suggested that abnormal activation of signaling pathways is a critical event in cancer pathogenesis. In particular, activation of these pathways can lead to inappropriate cellular survival, proliferation, pluripotency, invasion, metastasis, and angiogenesis. Thus, understanding the mechanisms by which signaling pathways become subverted in a cancer cell can provide insight into critical events in cancer pathogenesis. Furthermore, as our ability to target specific molecular interactions advances, we now have the ability to design small molecules, protein therapeutics, and other forms of targeted therapies. By focusing on the specific molecular abnormalities in a cancer cell, these agents hold the potential to be much more effective and much less toxic than current cytotoxic therapies.

With the support of multinational specialists, each with different background and separate field of expertise in oncology, this book had the occasion to emerge and to offer physicians, researchers and academics efficient, well-organized and updated scientific information related to the characteristics and treatment modalities of squamous cell carcinoma. It provided in-depth information regarding the comprehension of the molecular interaction of signalling pathways and new phenotypes that might result and lead to further cell proliferation and metastases. It also emphasized on the management and individualization of treatment strategies in different types of SCC, applying molecular profiling and approved protocols in order to identify new treatment opportunities. This book also discussed the potential therapeutic modalities that might arise upon understanding and exploring the role of key regulatory proteins that govern the process of cutaneous SCC progression. And Lastly, it underlined the molecular aberrations present in SCC of different organs and the possibility of emerging new therapeutic drugs by targeting these abnormalities. It is really an innovative record that combined novel information from various medical sources and mixed it to become unified in its scientific profit.