Science unlocks ANOTHER cancer clue

No one ever wants to hear the words, “It’s cancer.”

But the reality is, over 40 percent of us WILL face that diagnosis.

That’s why understanding the disease is so crucial to us in the medical community…

Just as adopting smart strategies to help ward off cancer is of utmost importance to virtually everyone.

So, let’s talk about an exciting advancement in the cancer fight…

Disease development and progression

Have you heard of senescent cells—often called “zombie cells”?

To put it simply, they’re essentially worn-out cells that have stopped functioning the way normal cells do.

In fact, they no longer take part in the healthy cell cycle of replicating themselves and creating new, healthy cells. Instead, they secrete inflammatory compounds that damage surrounding cells.

That’s why they’re implicated in everything from general aging to the development and progression of chronic diseases like cancer.

So, it’s no surprise that cancer research often focuses on senescent cells…

But could these cells be a bigger cancer clue than we thought?

A unique proposition

That’s the basis of the research at the Fred Hutch Cancer Center in Seattle.

In fact, Ming Yu, PhD, is studying how senescent cells affect immune cells in the precancer stage.

(As discussed yesterday, precancer is the stage where cells have begun growing abnormally, but haven’t yet turned into cancer.)

Yu explains how these cells can accumulate in our body and actually create a “tumor-promoting microenvironment” in older adults.

So, she wanted to explore if an anti-aging drug called rapamycin might halt the process.

For her research, she administered the drug and analyzed whether eliminating those zombie cells in mice will prevent cancer from developing.

This research is ongoing—and we should have results in a few months. So, I’ll be sure to report back.

In the meantime, I encourage you to be open and honest with your doctor. Talk to them about cancer, cancer-related genes, and your risk factors. And you might even consider inquiring about rapamycin—as it’s widely available by prescription and affordable. (I personally take it fives times per week.)

I’ll leave by saying this: You heard it here first!

Source:

“The Biology of ‘Precancer’: Stopping Cancer Before It Starts.” Medscape, 10/08/2024. (medscape.com/viewarticle/biology-precancer-stopping-cancer-before-it-starts-2024a1000icz)