Source: Northwestern University
Date: March 3, 2008
Summary:
A protein that governs development of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) also inhibits the growth and spread of malignant melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer, Northwestern University researchers have discovered. Metastatic melanoma, which develops from the transformation of skin pigment cells or melanocytes, has a death rate of more than 80 percent and a median survival of less than 7.5 months.
HealthDay News also published a news story about this finding:
"A protein called Lefty that regulates development of human embryonic stem cells can inhibit the growth and spread of deadly melanomas and aggressive breast cancers, says a study by researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago. The findings, published in this week's online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, add to the team's previous efforts to identify the genes and cellular pathways involved in cancer metastasis, and may help lead to new kinds of cancer treatments."
