Cancer stem cell
hideCancer stem cells (CSCs) are cancer cells (found within tumors or hematological cancers) that possess characteristics associated with normal stem cells, specifically the ability to give rise to all cell types found in a particular cancer sample. These cells are therefore tumorigenic (tumor-forming), perhaps in contrast to other non-tumorigenic cancer cells. CSCs may generate tumors through the stem cell processes of self-renewal and differentiation into multiple cell types. Such cells are proposed to persist in tumors as a distinct population and cause relapse and metastasis by giving rise to new tumors. Therefore, development of specific therapies targeted at CSCs holds hope for improvement of survival and quality of life of cancer patients, especially for sufferers of metastatic disease.
Existing cancer treatments were mostly developed on animal models, where therapies able to promote tumor shrinkage were deemed effective. However, animals could not provide a complete model of human disease. In particular, in mice, whose life spans do not exceed two years, tumor relapse is exceptionally difficult to study.
The efficacy of cancer treatments are, in the initial stages of testing, often measured by the fraction of tumor mass they kill off (fractional kill). As CSCs would form a very small proportion of the tumor, this may not necessarily select for drugs that act specifically on the stem cells. The theory suggests that conventional chemotherapies kill differentiated or differentiating cells, which form the bulk of the tumor but are unable to generate new cells. A population of CSCs, which gave rise to it, could remain untouched and cause a relapse of the disease.
For more information about Cancer stem cell, read the full article at
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News tagged with cancer stem
Potential new 'twist' in breast cancer detection
Dec 04, 2009 |
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Working with mice, scientists at Johns Hopkins publishing in the December issue of Neoplasia have shown that a protein made by a gene called "Twist" may be the proverbial red flag that can accurately distinguish stem cells ...
Australian bid to 'regrow' breasts after cancer surgery
Nov 12, 2009 |
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Australian scientists said Thursday they were to trial a revolutionary treatment which would allow women to regrow their breasts after cancer surgery.
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Successful stem cell therapy for treatment of eye disease
6 hours ago |
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Newly published research, by investigators, at the North East England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI) in the journal Stem Cells reported the first successful treatment of eight patients with "Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency" (LSCD) ...
'Mini' transplant may reverse severe sickle cell disease
Dec 09, 2009 |
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Results of a preliminary study by scientists at the National Institutes of Health and Johns Hopkins show that "mini" stem cell transplantation may safely reverse severe sickle cell disease in adults.
Sonic Hedgehog variations linked to recurrence, survival and response to therapy of bladder cancer
Dec 09, 2009 |
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Genetic variations in the Sonic Hedgehog pathway increase the likelihood of recurrence, reduce survival time and limit response to therapy for people with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, scientists from The University ...
Autologous stem cell transplantation for soft tissue sarcoma: insufficient research into therapy
Dec 08, 2009 |
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Due to a lack of suitable studies, it is unclear whether patients with soft tissue sarcoma can benefit from autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. With this type of therapy, some of the patient's own (autologous) ...
Defibrotide improves response rate in patients with severe veno-occlusive disease of the liver
Dec 08, 2009 |
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Defibrotide, a novel drug which modulates the response of blood vessels to injury, was markedly more effective than standard treatment in post-stem cell transplant patients with hepatic veno-occlusive disease, a life threatening ...
Combination therapy with midostaurin improves survival of AML patients with FLT3 mutations, phase 1
Dec 08, 2009 |
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A targeted drug that is active against acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is particularly effective when teamed with chemotherapy in patients whose cancer cells harbor a key genetic mutation, researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute ...
Spices halt growth of breast stem cells, study finds
Dec 07, 2009 |
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A new study finds that compounds derived from the spices turmeric and pepper could help prevent breast cancer by limiting the growth of stem cells, the small number of cells that fuel a tumor's growth.
New hope for diagnosis and treatment of intractable pediatric brain tumors
Dec 07, 2009 |
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Scientists have discovered oncogenes capable of driving growth of normal human brain stem cells in a highly malignant pediatric brain tumor. The research, published by Cell Press in the December issue of the journal Cancer Ce ...
Improving the odds:A new method for bone marrow transplantation
Dec 07, 2009 |
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Although bone marrow transplants have long been standard for acute leukemia, current treatments still rely on exact matches between donor and patient. Now, scientists at the University of Perugia, Italy, and the Weizmann ...
Drug shows positive responses, low side-effects in multiple myeloma
Dec 07, 2009 |
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NEW ORLEANS ― The second-generation proteasome inhibitor carfilzomib is showing noteworthy response rates and low levels of adverse side effects among multiple myeloma patients in a phase II clinical trial, researchers ...
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