TEK and neoplasm: Aberrant monocytes are linked to disease advancement through both direct effects, such as pro-angiogenic activity via Tie2 expression, pro-fibrotic effects through SLAM7 expression, and tumorigenic processes driven by excessive cytokine production, as well as indirect effects, including PD-L1 expression that inhibits T cell function, and differentiation into osteoclasts, macrophages, and mo-DCs, all of which facilitate tumor evasion from immune surveillance.