The first human metastasis map of different cancers is published, which
helps prevent cancer spread more accurately
Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, December 23 (Reporter Feng Weidong) According to a study recently published in the journal Nature, American scientists found that whether cancer has spread, how it spreads, and which organ it spreads to depend on many genetic and clinical factors.
The research team integrated features related to the metastasis of 500 human cancer cell lines to create a metastasis map of cancer in the human body (MetMap), which is the first ever map of how different cancers spread.
The new work jointly carried out by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Harvard Broad Institute shows that it is possible to predict the metastasis of human cancer cells in animal models.
New research can help scientists discover new details, including what factors drive metastasis, why certain cancers spread more easily than others, and how new cancer drugs can slow or stop this deadly process.
Researchers say that unfortunately, for too many cancer patients, despite treatment, their tumors continue to grow.
That would make people think that certain tumors can survive anywhere, but that is not the case.
The researchers labeled each of the 500 cancer cell lines representing 21 different cancers with unique DNA barcode molecules, allowing them to identify and track cancer cells.
The researchers then injected various combinations of cell lines into the circulatory system of the mice.
The research team monitored the spread of the cells and collected samples from the brain, lung, liver, kidney and bones after 5 weeks to determine which cell lines reside in which organ.
The study found that more than 200 cell lines survived and metastasized in mice.
They identified key characteristics related to tumor spread, including tumor type, location of origin, and age of the patient from which the cells were derived.
Researchers use this information to generate MetMap and interactive graphs showing the metastatic potential of each cancer cell line.
To show the value of their data, the researchers further studied a type of breast cancer that MetMap showed tended to spread to the brain.
They compared the genomes of these cell lines with those of non-metastatic breast cancer and pointed out many differences that promote brain spread.
They specifically pointed out that the key changes in the lipid metabolism of breast cancer cells enable them to survive in the microenvironment of the brain, indicating that future treatments may include interrupting lipid metabolism to slow down this metastasis.
Editor-in-chief
What people fear most about cancer is its ability to proliferate indefinitely, and the other is the inability of cancer cells. They are seldom safe and seem to have a "high-speed road" dedicated to their free movement, which often spreads quickly to other organs. And we haven't fully understood the "why", let alone "how". Now that this metastasis map of 21 different cancers and 500 cancer cell lines is released, it can be said that it has brought a glimmer of hope for mankind to completely defeat cancer in the future, and there may also be various targeted drugs coming out to save cancer patients. In the arduous suffering.