Abstract | Bone metastasis is the major cause of death in breast cancer. The lack of effective treatment suggests that disease
mechanisms are still largely unknown. As a key component of the tumor microenvironment, macrophages promote tumor
progression and metastasis. In this study, we found that macrophages are abundant in human and mouse breast cancer bone
metastases. Macrophage ablation significantly inhibited bone metastasis growth. Lineage tracking experiments indicated that
these macrophages largely derive from Ly6C+
CCR2+ inflammatory monocytes. Ablation of the chemokine receptor, CCR2,
significantly inhibited bone metastasis outgrowth and prolonged survival. Immunophenotyping identified that bone
metastasis–associated macrophages express high levels of CD204 and IL4R. Furthermore, monocyte/macrophage-restricted
IL4R ablation significantly inhibited bone metastasis growth, and IL4R null mutant monocytes failed to promote bone
metastasis outgrowth. Together, this study identified a subset of monocyte-derived macrophages that promote breast
cancer bone metastasis in an IL4R-dependent manner. This suggests that IL4R and macrophage inhibition can have potential
therapeutic benefit against breast cancer bone disease.
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