Scientists at Ontario's University Health Network (UHN) have discovered that colon cancer originates from rare, colon cancer stem cells within the tumors.
"We found that not every tumor cell is equally capable of sustaining tumors in the colon," says Dr. John Dick, the study's principal investigator, and senior scientist at the Ontario Cancer Institute.
Only about one in every 57,000 cells in colon cancer tumor colon cancer stem cells, but it is these rare cells that initiate the growth of the tumor, and then later differentiate into cancer cells.
"Since this is the heart of the tumor," says Dick, "you have to find and kill each of these colon cancer stem cells to truly cure the disease." Based on this discovery, scientists can now begin to identify unique genetic properties of colon cancer stem cells, and then develop drugs targeting these properties to prevent the disease from recurring
"We found that not every tumor cell is equally capable of sustaining tumors in the colon," says Dr. John Dick, the study's principal investigator, and senior scientist at the Ontario Cancer Institute.
Only about one in every 57,000 cells in colon cancer tumor colon cancer stem cells, but it is these rare cells that initiate the growth of the tumor, and then later differentiate into cancer cells.
"Since this is the heart of the tumor," says Dick, "you have to find and kill each of these colon cancer stem cells to truly cure the disease." Based on this discovery, scientists can now begin to identify unique genetic properties of colon cancer stem cells, and then develop drugs targeting these properties to prevent the disease from recurring
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