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World Cancer Day: Study claims cancer cells travel together to forge 'successful' metastases

The findings could help develop new drugs specifically to target metastasising cells.

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A metastasis now growing in lung tissue (blue) that originated from at least two cells (red and green) from a multicolored tumor in the mammary gland of a mouse. Credit: John Hopkins
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A new study claims that its is rare for cancer cells to form metastatic tumours on their own, as they prefer to travel in groups to increase "their collective chance of survival."

Researchers at Johns Hopkins claim the difference between travelling cells from those multiplying within a primary tumour, is what may make them resistant to chemotherapy naturally. "We found that cancer cells do two things to increase their chances of forming a new metastasis," said Andrew Ewald, professor of cell biology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in a press release. Adding,"They turn on a molecular program that helps them travel through a diverse set of environments within the body, and they travel in groups."

99% of cancer-related deaths are caused by metastasis, which is the most complex way that tumour cells spread through the body. The study adds"most chemotherapy drugs target proliferating cells and won't kill metastasising cells, which leaves patients vulnerable to new tumours."

On mice, the team tested a form of  mammary gland cancer which is known to spread to the lungs. They found fewer than 3% of metastases came from a single cell, and also found cell clusters at each step of the path to the lungs—in tissue, blood vessels, and blood.

When researchers also tested to see if the group travel gave cells an advantage, they found that clusters were "15 times better at forming colonies than single tumour cells". When the test was repeated on mice, they discovered the clusters were better at creating large metastases, 100 time more.

"You can think of metastasis as The Amazing Race," Ewald said. "The cells encounter many different challenges as they attempt to grow and spread, and some cells are better at different events than others, so travelling in a group makes sense."

The findings,could help to develop new drugs specifically to target metastasising cells.

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