Science Daily has yet another interesting piece about cancer. This one is called "New Clues about How Cancer Cells Communicate and Grow."
Basically, the tumors send out bits of RNA -- one of the building blocks of genetic material -- that sends signals to the body to create a hospitable environment for the tumor to grow. They signal the body to, for example, create blood vessels to feed the tumor.
Tricky little buggers, these cancer cells. Manipulative, too.
Some types of treatments may block these signals, so that the instructions don't go through. Others, though, will act on the cancer cells, but not block those signals.
This research doesn't necessarily lead to answers, but it does bring up some new pathways to explore. Which is all we ask.
No comments:
Post a Comment