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Stem cells may be key to understanding the origins of colon cancer and detecting relapse

By 18 de March de 2011November 18th, 2020No Comments
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 18.03.2011

Stem cells may be key to understanding the origins of colon cancer and detecting relapse

Colorectal cancer cells trigger a set of genes similar to those found in intestinal stem cells, scientists at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) have found. The team of researchers, led by ICREA researcher Eduard Batlle, propose that patients with colorectal cancer undergo genetic tests of their intestinal epithelium in order to predict a higher risk of relapse.

The results of the study, published online this week in Cell Stem Cell, offer new possibilities for diagnosing and treating the disease. The study conducted by Anna Merlos-Suárez and other researchers in Batlle’s team has uncovered a close relation between intestinal stem cells (non-specialised cells that generate all cells within the intestine) and colorectal cancer.

The researchers compared genes that are activated in cells from a healthy intestine – both stem cells and specialised cells – with the genes that are activated in tumour cells taken from patients. “Our results show that patients with colon cancer have a set of genes activated that is very similar to the set activated in stem cells. The more genes they have activated in common, the more likely it is that the patient’s cancer will spread and relapse.

One of the biggest hurdles that oncologists face is a lack of tools to identify which patients have a higher risk of relapse. Discovering a close relation between intestinal stem cells and the propagation of cancer is a clear breakthrough in this respect. The hypothesis that colorectal cancer requires a specific type of cell to develop and thrive has also been demonstrated in other types of cancer, including gliomas, some types of lymphoma or breast cancer. This finding opens the door for the development of treaments aimed at these new targets in the fight against cancer: tumour stem cells.