Gabriella Alvarez

BACKGROUND: Barrett’s Esophagus (BE) develops after reflux-mediated injury to distal esophagus and is only known precursor of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), a highly deadly and increasingly prevalent cancer…

INTRODUCTION: Wounding triggers epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity (EMP), a process in which epithelial cells acquire mesenchymal cell features. Some cells undergoing EMP exhibit _both _epithelial and mesenchymal features, and these epi-mesenchymal (E-M) cells are susceptible to cancer initiation…