Find a mechanism that makes cancer 'avoid' chemotherapy

A research team from Tulane University (USA) has identified the cannibalizing cells that cause cancer to undergo chemotherapy and recur.

A frightening mechanism that could pave the way for new cancer treatments has just been published in the scientific journal Journal of Cell Biology. According to the lead author, Dr. Crystal Tonnessen-Murray from Tulane University and colleagues found that some cells only stop multiplying when faced with chemotherapy, but hide without dying.

Green "carnivorous" cells are swallowing and digesting the same kind (red).

Chemotherapy drugs for breast cancer often cause dead cells to die from DNA damage. But a group of tricky cells chose to retreat to hibernation so that they would not be destroyed by their chemical counterparts. To survive, they turn into "cannibalistic" eaters: eating nearby cells for energy to continue maintaining the metabolism. This predatory action also gives them more energy to resist chemotherapy. Therefore, the number of diseased cells quickly reduced in number but not killed off.

This mechanism makes breast cancer and some other types of cancer fall into the recurrent group: when the treatment is over, these dormant cancer cells can wake up at any time and attack. work again, maybe stronger than before. They produce a large number of inflammatory molecules and many other factors that promote tumor recurrence. The survival rate for relapses is quite low.

The team also found the same behavior occurred in lung, bone and leukemia cells. In leukemia cells, they also observed how they brought their compatriots to cell compartments called lysosomes to gradually digest after swallowing.

While scary, this finding may be good news, as it provides practical data for scientists to understand how many cancers return, thereby creating treatments and preventing recurrences. "hit the target" more.