Physics of Cancer: How Mechanobiology Drives Cancer Progression
A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 December 2025 | Viewed by 799
Special Issue Editor
Interests: focal adhesions; vinculin; Rac1; integrins; collagen, cell migration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The physics of cancer represent an interdisciplinary research area investigating how mechanical forces and changes in the physical properties of cancer cells and their environment favor the progression of cancer. The field of cancer physics incorporates principles from biology, physiology, physics, engineering, and material science to understand how mechanical signals in cancer are sensed, transmitted, and integrated into biological processes, leading to malignant progression. The field of the physics of cancer is currently at a critical crossroads, with the potential to develop from a purely research-orientated field into a field with practical applications in cancer diagnosis and cancer therapy. The high stiffness of solid tumors and high interstitial pressure with hypoxia and acidosis represent a research focus in the physics of cancer, as they directly induce the mechanical activation of biochemical signaling pathways that promote the cell cycle, epithelial–mesenchymal transition, and cell motility/invasiveness. The aggressiveness of cancer is correlated with increased deformability in cancer cells, which may also control the ability of cancer cells to engulf other cells during tumor microevolution or to absorb drugs and thus respond to therapy. These findings revolve around the ability of cells to sense forces and physically explore their surroundings (mechanosensing) and to pass this message on to the cell nucleus (mechanotransduction). The intricacies of cellular mechanotransduction are far from being completely elucidated, but it has been proposed that specific transcription factors and membrane receptors play a central role.
Prof. Dr. Claudia Mierke
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cells is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- migration and invasion of cancer cells
- cytomechanics and adhesive properties
- cellular mechanotransduction
- mechanical signals
- viscoelasticity and stiffness
- physics of cancer
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
