London, Dec 08:In a key breakthrough, scientists have tracked the spread of breast cancer cells “live” for the first time, which they claim could pave the way for new cures for the disease.
A team at Cancer Research UK tagged cancer cells with a protein that glowed blue and showed that the protein, called Transforming Growth Factor beta, triggers the release of cancer cells from the main tumour.
Once free, these cells pass into the bloodstream and move into bones or other organs like the liver and the brain — which can prove fatal, the ‘Daily Express’ reported.
“The results helped us to find the set of genes behind the spread of breast cancer and that the genes need to be first turned on and then off in order for single cancer cells to be able to ‘relocate’,” team’s leader Erik Sahai wrote in the ‘Nature Cell Biology’ journal.
Previous research showed TGFb can regulate normal cell growth and movement. In the new study, cells were observed as, one by one, they broke away and entered the blood circulation.
When TGFb wasn’t active, clumps of cancer cells broke away instead of single ones. These clumps were able to pass through the lymphatic system, but not blood vessels. As a result, the spread of the cancer remained local.
–Agencies