Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest types of cancer. The most common form, called pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), spreads quickly and is very hard to treat. Right now, there are no effective treatments, and only about 8% of people with this cancer survive more than five years after they are diagnosed.
However, scientists at the Francis Crick Institute may have found a new way to target this cancer. Their recent study, published in Nature Cell Biology, focused on a special type of cancer cell that plays a key role in the growth of tumors.
These cells, known as cancer stem cells, are different from regular cancer cells. They behave like stem cells in the human body, which are responsible for repairing and growing new tissues.
Cancer stem cells can start new tumors and change into different types of cancer cells, making them especially dangerous. Because they help cancer grow and spread, finding a way to target these cells could lead to better treatments.
The research team, led by Axel Behrens, discovered that a protein called CD9 is found on the surface of these cancer stem cells. The protein appears both in early-stage and later-stage tumors, meaning it could be used as a marker to help doctors identify these dangerous cells.
But CD9 does more than just help locate cancer stem cells. The researchers found that it also plays a key role in making the cancer more aggressive. When they reduced the amount of CD9 in cancer cells in mice, the tumors that formed were much smaller. On the other hand, when they increased CD9 levels, the cancer cells grew quickly and formed large tumors.
The scientists also looked at clinical data from patients and found a strong connection between CD9 levels and survival rates. Patients whose tumor cells had more CD9 had a worse outcome. About 10% of people with this type of pancreatic cancer had very high levels of CD9, suggesting that the protein makes the disease more severe.
To understand why CD9 makes cancer worse, the researchers studied how cancer stem cells get their energy. They discovered that CD9 helps the cells absorb more glutamine, an important nutrient that fuels their growth. By taking in more glutamine, cancer cells can multiply faster and become harder to control.
This discovery is important because it opens up a new possibility for treatment. If scientists can develop drugs that block CD9 or stop cancer stem cells from getting glutamine, it could slow down or even stop tumor growth. Cutting off the cancer’s fuel supply would make it weaker and easier to treat.
Although more research is needed, this study offers hope for the future. If scientists can turn these findings into an effective treatment, it could lead to better survival rates and give new hope to people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
For more information about cancer, please see recent studies that plant-based diets may reduce risk of colorectal cancer in men, and Low-fat diet may help stop cancer growth.
For more information about cancer, please see recent studies about How to harness the power of anti-cancer foods and supplements and results showing that Empower your plate: cancer-fighting foods and recipes.
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