Stand Up To Cancer

According to a study out of UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, chemical modifications to proteins called histones can be used to predict the prognosis for and response to treatment of certain patients with pancreatic cancer. Histone modifications are an epigenetic change in the body, i.e. one that occurs over the course of one's life rather than because of their inherited DNA. (If the word "epigenetics" sounds familiar - it should!) "Overall, these histone modifications are providing useful information as to how a cancer may behave," said one of the researchers. "In addition, there may be a direct causal link between these changes and tumor aggressiveness."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100211091204.htm

Elsewhere, a team of scientists in New Jersey is working to learn more about "the secret lives" of cancer cells that self-cannibalize to survive periods of stress. It sounds like a good thing - let 'em eat themselves - but, in fact, researchers think self-cannibalization may be critical to a tumor's growth. The scientists in the study hope to produce new therapies that can stem these changes, which make cancer cells resistant to treatment. "The ultimate test will be to take all of our findings and use that information to develop novel approaches for eradicating cancer," said one team member. "If we can prevent tumor cells from utilizing this altered metabolic state then that should be the Achilles' heel of tumors."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100211151649.htm

You guys know I can't resist a good food story, and this one's my favorite of all the ones I've shared with you so far. Scientists have discovered that red grapes and dark chocolate are both foods that starve cancer cells - which puts red wine and this Dove bar right here in the same fine company as blueberries, garlic, soy and green tea. "What we eat is really our chemotherapy three times a day," explains one of the researchers behind the discovery, whose team is systematically identifying anti-cancer foods. I for one am thankful they checked out red wine and chocolate. Thanks for doing the due diligence there, guys!
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1192292/Cancer-starved-by-sweet-treat

Scientists at Yale recently announced that they've streamlined the process for synthesizing a family of compounds with the potential to kill cancer and other diseased cells. In the Journal of the American Chemical Society they introduce the unique category of anti-cancer agents, which are called kinamycins. "The key to success will be whether we can develop selectivity--whether we can kill cancer cells in the presence of non-cancerous tissue," said the study's lead author. "Based on what we already know about the chemical reactivity of these molecules, I'm optimistic we can do this."
http://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/Science_220/Yale_Scientists_Synthesize_Unique_Family_of_Anti-Cancer_Compounds.shtml

Finally, a little news on lung cancer: researchers have discovered sex-specific lung cancer genes, which go a long way toward explaining why the disease can be dramatically different between men and women. According to a JAMA study, the biology of lung cancer in women is extremely different from that in men, meaning there may be better ways to target treatments in the future. "Women, in general, have a less complex disease, at least in terms of the numbers of molecular pathways involved," said the study's lead author. "We also discovered that there is a subset of elderly patients would probably benefit from treatments that we've normally reserved for younger patients."
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61903W20100210

That's all for this week, but check back next Thursday for more!

--Cat