Precancerous cells

Scientists have made a breakthrough in understanding the development of prostate cancer

Svetlana Maslova, Hi-tech+

Scientists have demonstrated for the first time that against the background of the development of a prostate tumor, normal cells also undergo changes and, as it were, prepare to become tumor. This means that cancer treatment strategies should be changed and focus on the entire prostate gland.

Researchers from The University of East Anglia has found that the entire prostate gland, including healthy cells, is different in men with cancer. Their discovery changes the existing understanding of scientists about the mechanisms of tumor development and points to new therapeutic strategies.

The findings are based on the analysis of 121 prostate tissue samples from 37 men with cancer, as well as healthy volunteers. "We studied samples of cancerous tissue and other parts of the prostate that look normal under a microscope," the authors explain.

It turned out that normal cells of cancer patients had more mutations than the same normal ones in healthy people. Further studies have shown that mutations in normal cells differ from mutations in cancer cells.

Article by Buhigas et al. The architecture of clonal expansions in morphologically normal tissue from cancerous and non-cancerous prostates is published in the journal Molecular Oncology – VM.

"Probably, normal cells in men with cancer provide a favorable environment for the development and growth of the tumor," explained co—author Daniel Brewer, "In other words, their prostate gland is, as it were, ready for the development of cancer."

The obtained results provide important new information about the early stages of tumor development. Scientists believe that they should be used to revise cancer treatment strategies — affecting the entire gland as a whole, and not just the cancer-affected areas.

In another study, scientists found confirmation of a 75-year—old hypothesis, according to which the presence of a mutation is not enough for the development of cancer - an additional trigger is needed.

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