VEGFA and neoplasm: During tumorigenesis the trans-differentiation of the aforementioned cells into CAFs is driven by sustained exposure to tumor-derived factors including TGF-β, PDGF-BB, basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), as well as microRNAs, reactive oxygen species (ROS), matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) and extracellular vesicles [15,16,17,18,19].