When one emergency brake that keeps cancer at bay fails, bladder cells activate a new (and previously unknown) anti-cancer brake. In a new study published in Cancer Cell, Fred Hutch researchers reveal a new bladder cancer-preventive mechanism, how it works, how it's triggered and perhaps how it could be targeted to help patients.
The 30 trillion cells in our bodies harbor a lot of potentially dangerous DNA mutations but most will never grow a tumor. The protective strategies our bodies use to stave off tumor growth in the face of inevitable mutations could help researchers uncover new ways to prevent or treat cancer, if they're willing to look.
Our bodies are continually preventing cancer. The different strategies they use to keep mutated cells from turning cancerous, or keep cancer cells in check, could help us develop new ways to prevent or cure cancer.
Spotlight Featured Researcher Alice Berger. This cancer geneticist and researcher is an expert in discovering how changes to our genetic code lead to cancer.
A long-term project by Fred Hutch researchers studying precancerous Barrett's esophagus revealed genetic changes that occur in patients whose condition progresses to esophageal cancer.