Source: University of California - Los Angeles
Date: August 17, 2010
Summary:
Adult stem cells that are vital for airway repair in the lung but that persist in areas where pre-cancerous lesions are found are associated with a poor prognosis in patients who develop cancer, even those with early-stage disease, researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have found.
These adult stem cells are found in areas repairing after injury and also are found in pre-cancerous areas, suggesting that they may mutate and become cancer-causing stem cells, making them a potential cell of origin for lung cancer and a possible target for prevention strategies and new targeted therapies.
The study found that when these adult stem cells are found in excised tumors, they are associated with a poor prognosis, and they could be used as markers to dictate the need for more aggressive treatment, said Jonsson Cancer Center researcher Brigitte Gomperts, an assistant professor of hematology–oncology and co-senior author of the study. The presence of the adult stem cells in the tumors also was found to be associated with a higher likelihood that the cancer had spread to other organs.
The study appeared Aug. 15 in the peer-reviewed journal Cancer Research.
