Researchers have identified a defining moment in the growth of certain cancers, which could hold the key to understanding how they develop.
Cancer ranks as the second leading cause of death in the United States, surpassed only by heart disease.
This year, approximately two million people in the U.S. are anticipated to receive a cancer diagnosis.
In a recent breakthrough, scientists in the UK have discovered why some types of a prevalent cancer progress more rapidly than others. This could potentially improve treatment approaches.
The findings were published in the journal Nature Genetics on Wednesday (November 5) by researchers from Cancer Research UK and the Wellcome Trust.
The study focuses on bowel cancer, also referred to as colorectal cancer, which is the third most prevalent cancer in the nation after breast and bladder cancers.
This year, an estimated 154,270 new cases of the disease were projected.
The American Cancer Society reports that the lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer is approximately one in 24 for men and one in 26 for women.
The researchers discovered that cancer cells avoid detection by the immune system through epigenetic changes, which modify the way DNA is interpreted.
This alteration reduces the expression of neoantigens, proteins that typically signal immune cells to act against threats.
Consequently, the immune system does not recognize the cancer cells as dangerous, allowing them to proliferate and spread unnoticed.
Dr. Catherine Elliott, Director of Research at Cancer Research UK, commented: “To beat bowel cancer for everyone, we need to understand what happens at the very earliest stages of the disease.
“No matter how different bowel cancer tumours can look, one defining moment at the start makes a big difference to how the cancer grows.”
This initial immune evasion impacts the entire progression of the cancer and highlights why some bowel cancers do not respond to immunotherapy, a treatment that enables the immune system to detect and attack cancer cells.
Dr. Elliott further explained: “Bowel cancer has an insidious ability to resist treatment. Immunotherapy is starting to work well for patients, but it doesn’t work for everyone.
“This research helps us understand why, as well as giving us new insights to make immunotherapy work better for bowel cancer.”
Tom Collins, Research Lead for Discovery Research at the Wellcome Trust, added: “Through tracing the earliest stages of bowel cancer, the research team has shed valuable new light on a mechanism that could lead to more targeted, effective and early treatments.
“This is a powerful example of discovery science. Research at this molecular level has provided a deeper understanding of how bowel cancer develops, which could lead to the improved health outcomes for patients in the long-term.”
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and wish to speak to someone confidentially, you can reach out to the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345 or use their 24/7 live chat feature.