Chemotherapy and radiation therapy have been the most commonly used forms of cancer treatment for many decades. Although both treatment are effective at killing cancer cells, they are both toxic to healthy cells in the body, which causes several serious side effects.
A new generation of cancer treatments is currently being developed, which can successfully combat cancer with much less dramatic side effects. The two most exciting treatments currently being researched are immunotherapy and targeted therapy.
Immunotherapy involves altering the body’s immune system to make it more effective at locating and killing cancer cells. Targeted therapy uses drugs which have been designed to target genetic mutations in the body.
Although these new treatments are less toxic than chemotherapy or radiation therapy, there is some potential toxicity involved. They can also stop working if a patient develops a resistance to the treatment.
In order to further improve these new treatments, researchers must learn more about tumour biology. The best way to do so is to look at the stem cell biology of tumours. This tells researchers how tumours grow and operate in the body.
Researchers have been fascinated by stem cells for over a century. They are powerful cells which have the ability to proliferate and differentiate into other types of cells. Stem cells are the building blocks of the human body, which create all of our organs and tissue.
Understanding the role that stem cells play in tumour development will help researchers develop highly targeted treatments that “shut down” tumour stem cells. This could prevent them from growing or spreading to other parts of the body.
One of the questions that researchers need to answer when it comes to stem cells is ‘Which types of stem cells are more likely to become cancerous — and why?’. They know that skin and intestinal cells have a higher likelihood of becoming cancerous, but the reason why isn’t fully known.
Researchers believe that a greater understanding of the relationship between stem cells and tumours will help them develop exciting new treatments in the future.
Source: How Understanding Stem Cell Biology Can Improve Cancer Therapy
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