Cancer is one of the leading causes of death around the world. In many cases, people do not die from the original tumor itself. Instead, they die when cancer spreads to other parts of the body.
This process is called metastasis. When cancer spreads, it becomes much harder for doctors to treat and control the disease.
Metastasis begins when tiny groups of cancer cells break away from the main tumor. These cells can travel through the bloodstream or the lymph system to other organs. Once they arrive at a new location, they may begin to grow and form new tumors.
These wandering cells are extremely small. In many cases they are impossible to see during surgery or with medical scans.
Because of this risk, doctors often use chemotherapy after surgery. Chemotherapy is meant to kill any cancer cells that may still be hiding in the body. This extra treatment is often called adjuvant therapy. It is used to lower the chance that cancer will return or spread later.
However, chemotherapy can also have side effects. One problem is that it can cause inflammation in the body. Inflammation is part of the body’s natural defense system. It helps the immune system respond to injuries and infections. But in some situations, inflammation may actually help cancer cells survive and spread instead of destroying them.
Scientists have been trying for many years to find ways to prevent metastasis after surgery. Recently, researchers at Emory University in the United States discovered a possible new approach. Their idea involves using a common anti‑inflammatory medicine called ketorolac.
Ketorolac is a drug that doctors usually give for short‑term pain relief. It belongs to a group of medicines called nonsteroidal anti‑inflammatory drugs, often known as NSAIDs. These drugs reduce pain and swelling by blocking chemicals in the body that cause inflammation.
Ketorolac is already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but doctors normally use it only for a short time because of concerns about possible side effects if it is used for too long.
In the new study, the researchers wondered whether ketorolac could help prevent cancer cells from spreading during the time around surgery. Surgery itself can cause stress and inflammation in the body. The scientists believed that lowering this inflammation might help the immune system destroy any leftover cancer cells.
To test this idea, the team carried out experiments in mice with cancer. They gave ketorolac before surgery and then studied how the cancer behaved afterward. The results were promising. Mice that received ketorolac had less cancer spread compared with mice that did not receive the drug. They also survived longer.
The researchers found that ketorolac appeared to help activate the immune system. The immune system is the body’s natural defense against disease.
When it is working well, immune cells can detect and destroy abnormal cells, including cancer cells. By reducing inflammation, ketorolac seemed to allow immune cells to attack the tiny cancer cells that might otherwise escape and grow elsewhere in the body.
The scientists also looked at whether ketorolac could work even better when combined with other simple treatments. They tested a combination that included low‑dose aspirin and omega‑3 fatty acids, which are healthy fats found in foods such as fish and certain plant oils. Both aspirin and omega‑3 fatty acids are known to have anti‑inflammatory effects.
When these treatments were used together, the results improved even more. The combination further reduced the spread of cancer cells in the mice. More of the animals survived compared with those that received only one treatment.
These findings are exciting because all of these substances already exist and are widely known. They are not new experimental drugs. This means that if future research confirms the results, it might be easier and faster to test this strategy in human patients.
The researchers caution that more studies are still needed before doctors can begin using this approach routinely in cancer treatment. Scientists must first confirm that the same effects happen in people and that the treatment is safe when used around the time of surgery.
Still, the discovery opens an interesting new direction for cancer research. Instead of focusing only on killing cancer cells directly, scientists are exploring ways to change the body’s environment so that cancer cannot easily spread.
The study was led by Dr. Vikas P. Sukhatme and was published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. The research highlights how medicines that are already available may sometimes be used in new ways to improve cancer treatment.
If future studies confirm these results, a simple painkiller given before surgery might one day help doctors stop cancer from spreading and help more patients live longer, healthier lives.
If you care about cancer, please read studies that low-carb diet could increase overall cancer risk, and new way to increase the longevity of cancer survivors.
For more health information, please see recent studies about how to fight cancer with these anti-cancer superfoods, and results showing daily vitamin D3 supplementation may reduce cancer death risk.
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