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Experimental Research Questions Origin of Cancer Cells

Experimental Research Questions Origin of Cancer Cells

September 10, 2015

Medical Research

Prof. Sergio Lamprecht

Prof. Sergio Lamprecht

Despite how long it has been plaguing humanity, there are still many mysteries about cancer we have yet to solve. Even the root cause of the “Emperor of All Maladies” is still up for debate, making the quest for a cure seem like a steep uphill battle.

Recently, however, a new study by BGU scientists changed the conversation about where this all too common disease originates, quite possibly making that hill look a bit more level.

A prominent theory posits that cancerous cells develop directly from adult stem cells that mutate and multiply to the point of becoming harmful. Yet the research of Professors Sergio Lamprecht and Alexander Fich, of BGU’s Departments of Clinical Biochemistry and Pharmacology and Gastroenterology respectfully, has shown the potential of other, non-stem cells to become cancerous as well.

In layman’s terms, stem cells are those cells that have not yet found a “job” — undifferentiated cells that have the potential to become any type of cell in the body. Their seemingly near unlimited potential for fluctuation has led to the belief that they, of all cells, are the most likely to eventually change into something undesirable.

Profs. Lamprecht and Fich, however, have presented significant observational evidence that healthy adult cells can, under the right conditions, take on the characteristics of adult stem cells, thus becoming the progenitors of cancer in the gastrointestinal tract.

Prof. Alexander Fich

Prof. Alexander Fich

But what could this mean for cancer research and prevention going forward? “Obviously, for future therapeutics to succeed,” their conclusion states, “they must take into consideration the finding that non-stem cell populations are plastic, easily molded and able to acquire, on demand, stem cell competence.

“Consequently, in addition to therapies aimed at targeting CSCs [cancerous stem cells], the recurring observation of progenitor cells’ plasticity in cancer and the tissue injury that follows should inform the design of future anticancer drugs and protocols aimed at tissue-specific regeneration.”

In studying the implications of this new research, we could finally find ourselves on the cusp of eliminating the scourge of cancer once and for all.