This story was first published in digitalhealth.net
Cancer treatment cuts spread of cancer by 75 per cent, study shows
A study published in Nature has shown a treatment which involves altering the body’s immune system can reduce the spread of cancer by three-quarters.
Current research has found that once established, tumours can develop in several other areas of the body, a process known as metastasis which is behind 90 per cent of cancer deaths.
The animal study, conducted on mice, showed altering the immune system slowed the spread of skin cancers to the lungs.
Cancer Research UK said the early work gave new insight into how tumours spread and may lead to new treatments.
The researchers at Sanger Institute in Cambridge created 810 sets of genetically modified lab mice to discover which sections of the DNA were involved in the body resisting a cancer's spread.
In particular the scientists discovered 23 genes, that affected the rate of metastasis.
They found that targeting one gene, called Spns2, led to a three-quarters reduction in tumours spreading to the lungs.
Dr David Adams, one of the researchers on the team, said: ”It regulated the balance of immune cells within the lung. It changes the balance of cells that play a role in killing tumour cells and those that switch off the immune system."
Adams continued: "We've learnt some interesting new biology that we might be able to use - it's told us this gene is involved in tumour growth."
Dr Justine Alford, from Cancer Research UK, said: "This study in mice gives a new insight into the genes that play a role in cancer spreading and may highlight a potential way to treat cancer in the future.
"Cancer that has spread is tough to treat, so research such as this is vital in the search for ways to tackle this process."
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