Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and the University of Copenhagen have discovered a new way to ‘fence in’ a tumor and help stop cancer cells from spreading. Tumors cause cells called fibroblasts to stiffen the surrounding tissue so that cancer cells can grip it, allowing them to tunnel through to the blood stream and spread around the body.
They showed that adding experimental drugs, reprogrammed fibroblasts helped in stopping them from ‘stiffening’ the tissue around tumors. This healthy tissue trapped the cancer cells, blocking their movement away from the tumor.
The team showed in mice that targeting fibroblasts reduced the movement of cancer cells from the tumor to the lungs and liver through the blood stream.
“This could be an exciting new way to harness the potential of the healthy tissue surrounding cancers to contain and restrain aggressive tumors , stopping cancer cells from breaking away and moving to new places in the body,” said co-lead author of the study, Erik Sahai from the Francis Crick Institute. “It is early but a very promising new avenue of research. If further studies show this route can benefit patients, it could help crack one of the toughest challenges in cancer research to stop tumors from spreading,” said lead author Janine Erler from Biotech Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC) at the University of Copenhagen.
Nell Barrie, senior science information manager at Cancer Research UK said: “Most deaths from cancer are caused when cancer cells travel to new sites in the body and grow as secondary tumors. And we know that it’s not just cancer cells that play a part in this process, other cells in and around tumors are involved too.
“But the good news is research like this has the potential to uncover new ways to stop cancer in its tracks. Ultimately we hope these findings could lead to better ways to control the disease and save more lives.”
For more information please visit: http://www.crick.ac.uk
