Cancer Scientists Prove Long-Standing Theory on How Cancer Spreads

SciTech Daily ^ | June 28, 2013 | Staff

[neverdem]

A newly published study shows that white blood cells and a cancer cells can fuse and initiate a tumor, providing the first proof in humans of a long proposed theory.

Yale Cancer Center scientists, together with colleagues at the Denver Police Crime Lab and the University of Colorado, have found evidence that a human metastatic tumor can arise when a leukocyte (white blood cell) and a cancer cell fuse to form a genetic hybrid. Their study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, may answer the question of how cancer cells travel from the primary tumor’s site of origin to distant organs and tissues of the body — the deadly process of metastasis.

Such a theory was first proposed as an explanation for metastasis more than a century ago. But until now, the theory was unproven in human cancer because genomic differences between cells from the same patient cannot be distinguished. To get around this problem, the researchers analyzed genomic DNA in the secondary malignancies of a patient who had a melanoma brain metastasis and had received a bone marrow transplant from his brother.

They found signature genes from both the patient and donor together in the tumor cells, providing the first evidence that leukocytes (in this case from the donor) can fuse with cancer cells and initiate a tumor.

“Our results provide the first proof in humans of a theory, proposed in 1911 by a German pathologist, that metastasis can occur when a leukocyte and cancer cell fuse and form a genetic hybrid,” said corresponding author John Pawelek, research faculty in the dermatology department of the Yale School of Medicine. “This could open the way to new therapy targets, but much work needs to be done to determine how fusion occurs, the frequency of such hybrids in human cancers, and the potential role of hybrids in metastasis,” he added.

First authors are Rossitza Lazova of Yale and Greggory LaBerge of the University of Colorado and Denver Police Department Crime Lab; other authors are Vincent Klump, Mario Sznol, Dennis Cooper, and Joseph Chang of Yale; Eric Duvall of the Denver Police Crime Lab; and Nicole Spoelstra and Richard Spritz of the University of Colorado.

The study was supported by an unrestricted gift from the Amway Corporation and from the University of Colorado Cancer Center NCI Support Grant (P30CA046934).

Publication: Lazova R, LaBerge GS, Duvall E, Spoelstra N, Klump V, et al. (2013) A Melanoma Brain Metastasis with a Donor-Patient Hybrid Genome following Bone Marrow Transplantation: First Evidence for Fusion in Human Cancer. PLoS ONE 8(6): e66731. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0066731

Source: Helen Dodson, Yale University

Image: Cancer Cell and Lymphocytes from Shutterstock

[blackdog]

Sorry...........I thought this headline was about our president, his goals, and aspirations around the globe.

[Smokin' Joe]

Ping....(thanks for posting, neverdem)

[BenLurkin]

ping

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[Smokin' Joe]

You’re Welcome, Alamo-Girl!

[DennisR]

It is...

[SueRae]

An amazing photo.

And why I’ve always worried about cancer surgery. White cells are the first on the scene of an injury. If a cancer cell remains or gets into the bloodstream, the white cell will find it.

[Shimmer1]

ping for later

[HiTech RedNeck]

pretty fair analogy though

[Pentagon Leatherneck]

I’ve always suspected that my late sister’s death from lung cancer was somehow linked to her work at NIH as a cancer researcher/caregiver. Otherwise healthy and non-smoker, she was diagnosed with stage three cancer, went briefly into remission, but succumbed two years later. If this sort of metastasis can occur inside the body, is it possible to transfer to another body?

TC

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks neverdem and BenLurkin.

[SunTzuWu]

Bookmark.

[Nailbiter]

bflr

[sun7]

I once read that cancer is viral, and is actually an offshoot of the common cold virus. We all have cancer cells in our bodies at one point or another, but only those whose immune system is lowered for whatever reason will get the disease.

[GOPJ]

Interesting.

[Jewbacca]

Cancer is a symptom or a disorder, not a disease.

Lots of things cause the symptom or disorderof cancer, from radiation, to overexposure to certain chemicals, to certain viri (e.g., the HPV virus).

[neverdem]

Cancer is a symptom or a disorder, not a disease.

Lots of things cause the symptom or disorderof cancer, from radiation, to overexposure to certain chemicals, to certain viri (e.g., the HPV virus).

Cancer begins in your cells, which are the building blocks of your body. Normally, your body forms new cells as you need them, replacing old cells that die. Sometimes this process goes wrong. New cells grow even when you don't need them, and old cells don't die when they should. These extra cells can form a mass called a tumor. Tumors can be benign or malignant. Benign tumors aren't cancer while malignant ones are. Cells from malignant tumors can invade nearby tissues. They can also break away and spread to other parts of the body.

Cancer is not just one disease but many diseases. There are more than 100 different types of cancer. Most cancers are named for where they start. For example, lung cancer starts in the lung, and breast cancer starts in the breast. The spread of cancer from one part of the body to another is called metastasis. Symptoms and treatment depend on the cancer type and how advanced it is. Most treatment plans may include surgery, radiation and/or chemotherapy. Some may involve hormone therapy, biologic therapy, or stem cell transplantation.

(Read more)

Even that is an oversimplification. There are over 200 different types of cells in humans. There are four main types of lung cancer, IIRC. At least one type of bacteria, Helicobacter Pylori, the bug responsible for about ninety percent of gastric and duodenal ulcers, is also thought to be the cause of MALT lymphomas, etc.

[sun7]

Saw the replies to my comment just now and thank you neverdem for the clarification.

The fact that cancer cells have a mind of their own is a clear sign that they had been hijacked and their genetic material completely transformed. And only viruses are known to do that.

Things like radiation, chemical carcinogens, or even stress probably damage or weaken the cells (and the immune system) and make them susceptible to all kinds of attacks, both bacterial and viral. What we believe to be a disorder or systemic may actually be caused by some distinct pathogens, such as the discovery of H. pylori in ulcers you mentioned.