Tumor cells try to spread throughout the body. In order to do so, these cells need Rho and ROCK or Rac to signal their movement. There are at least two types of morphology (shapes/forms) that need these signals for cell movement. One type is the elongated morphology, which needs to use Rac for signalling, and pericellular proteolysis (an enzyme) for movement. The other type is the rounded (amoeboid) morphology, which uses RhoA and ROCK signalling. Initially, tumor cells were known to take the elongated form. It is now known that the rounded shape also exists and possibly other morphologies as well. This research is focused on tumor cells that have rounded morphology, elongated morphology, and those that can utilize both forms.
There has been research in attempts to inhibit, or block, these signals in order to stop tumor cells from spreading. However, this may cause a problem for other cells that may need to move to certain places of the body to function. Researchers have experimented with the use of inhibitors, such as Y27632, C3, and a combination of Y27632 and C3, on different types of tumor cells to see what percentage of cells still invaded to a certain distance. This information is compared to the percentage of untreated cells that invaded the same set distance. The effectiveness of these inhibitors are then related to the type of morphology (elongated or rounded or both) to see if certain types of inhibitors work better in a type of morphology. More research has been conducted to find the percentage of different tumor cells that have invaded three different depths. This is also used to analyze the effectiveness of the inhibitors on the varying types of morphologies.
The basic procedure for this type of experiment is d...
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...affected by these inhibitors known at this point? Is it possible that there are other morphology changes and signals involved in cell movement?
The hopes for developments in the fight against cancer are high, especially in the hearts of innumerable patients, families, and friends. Each small step in the right direction is a step toward a cure, and it's progress such as these discoveries that will someday help save and improve the lives of countless individuals.
We would like to thank the people who sit behind a microscope ten hours a day. They are committed to watching blobs move around on a plate in the hope that these blobs can shed light on the diseases that hurt, cripple and kill our fellow human beings. The future is brighter because of the problems being tackled, and the prospects of tomorrow give reason for the contributions and investments of today.
Altman, Lawrence K. ìShark Substance Found to Limit Tumor Growth.î New York Times 1 May 1996: A15.
The acquisition of an immortalized proliferative potential is very important for human tumors because, otherwise, the tumors will not grow in number nor will they metastasize. Mutations in progenitor cells would not be transmitted too far as they have limited replication and proliferation ability. Thus, the growth of the tumors will be limited. Hence, if there is even a very small population of cells with the ability to proliferate continuously, there will be a source for productions of more cells for the tumor. Clonogenic assays have shown that, though most cells in a tumor have a limited ability to proliferate, a subset of cancer cells exist in these tumors that continuously proliferate and give rise to new tumors on transplantation.
Cancer is a disease in which cells multiply out of control and gradually build a mass of tissue called a tumor. There has been a large amount of research dedicated to the treatment and cure of cancer. Several types of treatments have been developed. The following are just some of the major examples of cancer therapy: surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, biologic therapy, biorhythms, unconventional treatments, and hyperthermia. Each type of treatment is discussed in detail below.
Cancer starts when certain cells in the body are mutated or changed and begin to divide. Cancerous cells grow differently than normal cells, instead of progressing through the normal cell lifecycle, cancer cells continue to grow and create more abnormal cells. A specific trait of cancer cells is that they have the ability to infiltrate and grow into surrounding tissues, developing out of control and causing serious damage to the host (Vincent, 2008). Cells become cance...
Cancer in one way or another touches all of us, whether as a patient or through the diagnosis of the people you love around you. Millions of patients who are faced with cancer are depending on oncologists everywhere to cure cancer so others will not suffer like they had to. Optimistically, sooner rather than later this international problem will come to an end. There are a number of drug companies that have been coming out with cancer treatment drugs. “Oncology has been one of the hottest and most active therapeutic areas for drug development, drug makers may want to take note of a finding that new cancer drugs have proven far more difficult to gain approval than medicines for infectious and autoimmune diseases.” (nature.com) Unfortunately, these drugs cannot cure the cancer but it sure makes it a load easier o...
Pressure from the growing tumour, means that it takes up more space, it begins to press on the normal body tissue nearby. The tumour growth will force itself through the normal tissue. Cancers may grow between sheets of muscle tissue rather than straight through one particular muscle. As the cancer grows, it will squeeze and block small blood vessels in the area. Due to low blood and oxygen levels, some of the normal tissue will begin to die off. This makes it easier for the cancer to continue to push its way through.
Cancer has been seen in humans as one the most potentially fatal disease for thousands of years and only in the recent couple of hundred years have we discovered that most information necessary to bring us to today’s understanding and knowledge (Kenny 2007, Weinberg 1996) was achieved by extensive research of cells, DNA, and epidemiology studies. As we know, currently cancer is acknowledged as having over a hundred different diseases, and is known to be the result of mutations of the genes and almost similar DNA which are responsible for the amount of cell division and production (Kenny 2007). Restraint of cell growth modulators can be a direct lead and result of certain tumours being developed and subsequently allow these tumours to acquire the ability to attack and occupy the bloodstream and essentially be able to travel via the bloodstream to other parts and organs in human bodies which is known as metastasis (Loeb et Al 2003). Once this has occurred , the cancer is then categorized as malicious and becomes a dangerous and serious threat to the carrier (Weinberg 1996). In this essay I will describe and explain the process of this and how our genes mutate and lead to metastasis of cancer cells.
Skipping through the corridors of the Chapel Hill laboratories at a young age, I peered through doors and windows mesmerized by researchers articulate and skillful completion of innovative experiments. Growing up my parents, who are professors in Cancer Center, exposed me to a background of thinking forward and observing intricate details. With this upbringing, I gained a curiosity in research and later leading to an interest in ecology of cancer.
Jose Baselga, a lead Physician at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York said, “The next 10 years are expected to usher in unprecedented advances in oncology, including molecularly driven diagnostic and therapeutic developments, whole genome sequencing that results in true precision-based medicine, survivorship care plans that address long-term quality of life concerns, and team-based, cross-disciplinary approaches to research.”(Advances in Medical). This educated guess by Dr. Baselga can lead us to believe that our education about cancer grows with every new account and new procedure that we complete. In the next decade, our understanding of Oncology will be revolutionized in the hope that it will bring us closer to our intended goal of defeating this monstrous disease. Oncology is a flourishing field that is and will be in high demand in the 21st Century because when a problem has been confirmed to be present the human task force will go to various lengths in order to find a solution. Now that Oncology has found a way to presently deal with cancer such as chemotherapy, addressing long term effects of those solutions will be an area that will be focused on as Oncology takes steps forwards towards a cure. Another concentration in Oncology that will develop in the next 10 years will be the prevention of
In this day and age Cancer has started become an epidemic. Doctors have diagnosed hundreds of different types of cancer which can strike at anytime. Soon everyone will suffer or will have suffered from this social problem. “ Cancer is a general term used to indicate more than 100 separate diseases, but all marked by the common characterists of abnormal cell growth regulating mechanisms” ( Rodgers 14). Fortunately, with the advance in technology growing every day, many cancer diagnoses can be regulated or even cured with simple surgery.
The American Cancer Society publishes current advances made in cancer research on their website. Many of the exciting discoveries about how best to treat the disease focus on the genetic aspects associated with certain types of cancer. In addition, treatments aimed at genetic solutions to cancer may be more effective and may cause fewer adverse side effects than traditional cancer treatments (American Can...
“Since 1990, over 6 million Americans have died of cancer, more than the combined casualties from the Civil war, WWII, and the Vietnam and Korean conflicts combined” (Faguet, p. 5). According to American Cancer Society projections, there were 1,529,560 new cases of cancer in 2010. Cancer is becoming more and more common around the world. New cancers are constantly being discovered. Researchers are finding new ways to detect cancer and treat it so that the fatality rate does not rise. However, there are some cancers that researchers have not yet discovered a cure for. It is very important for Cancer Research to continue so that one day these cancers will no longer be a treat.
There are two types of tumors, benign tumors and malignant tumors. Benign tumors are not cancerous. These types of tumors can usually be removed and do not come back in most cases. Benign tumors do not spread to other parts of the body and the cells do not invade other tissues. Unlike b...
...r is hard to cure due to its ability to metastasis and avoid apoptosis due to mutation occurs in the genes during mitosis, especially on oncogen and tumour suppressor gene. Oncogen contribute to cancer cells by encouraging cells to grow and divide excessively while tumour suppressor genes inhibit apoptosis. As all cells on Earth require oxygen, nutrients and the ability to remove waste products to survive and develop, it seems possible to develop anti-cancer drugs which will target at those blood vessels which supply nutrients to tumour cells. Even though this method is providing some promising results, there is no significant improvement in the overall survival of the organism in the long term. Nevertheless, the understanding of cellular basis of cancer cells gain from numerous researches have certainly help in developing new and effective treatment for cancer.