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USC researchers discover breast cancer stem cells in bone marrow
October 09, 2006Almost all tumor cells found in the bone marrow of early stage breast cancer patients appear to be breast cancer stem cells, suggesting the risk of disease spread for all breast cancer patients may be greater than previously thought, according to a ground-breaking study by Richard J. Cote, professor of pathology and urology at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC).
"Most Early Disseminated Cancer Cells Detected in Bone Marrow of Breast Cancer Patients Have a Putative Breast Cancer Stem Cell Phenotype" which appears in this week's issue of Clinical Cancer Research, provides the first evidence of the putative stem/progenitor cells within tumor cells collected from the bone marrow.
Stem cells are a type of cell in breast tumors that are believed to seed the growth of new cancers. These cells are only a small part of the vast number of cells within tumors, but they can act like adult stem cells-a basic cell that can grow into different types of specialized cells.
Much current research has focused on the theory that it is these stem cells landing in a distant site that creates metastases, and not simply single cells that detach from the primary tumor and travel to another part of the body.
Although disseminated tumor cells, either in the bone marrow or lymph nodes, are already regarded as a prerequisite for relapse and metastasis, no studies have as yet examined these cells for the existence of the stem cell phenotype.
"The primary implication is that it is the stem cell population in cancers that are presumed to be the only cells capable of forming metastases," said Cote. "Metastasis is the most important event for determining outcome in cancer patients."
In the study, Cote and colleagues looked at 50 bone marrow specimens from women whose breast cancer was caught in its earliest stages, but in whom tumor cells were detected in the bone marrow. Using a newly developed immunohistochemical protocol, Cote and colleagues found the tumor cells from all patients contained a population of putative stem cells.
The presence of CD44 protein with the absence of CD24 protein defines the stem cell population of tumor cells. Only a small proportion of tumor cells at the primary tumor site in the breast have been shown to have the stem cell characteristics. It has been shown that only the stem cells have the ability to form metastases in experimental models.
What was surprising to Cote and his colleagues, who anticipated some stem cells within the disseminated tumor cells, was that the majority of the remote tumor cells have the stem cell characteristics, and that they appeared in the bone marrow of breast cancer patients whose disease was caught in the earliest stages.
"We know that the presence of disseminated tumor cells in the bone marrow is a bad feature, as it is an indicator of future metastases, but we didn't know if these were the cells that actually cause disease progression," said Cote. "This data suggest that the vast majority of patients with disseminated tumor cells may have a life-time risk for relapse. We definitely need to pursue molecular studies of these putative stem cells."
University of Southern California
Much current research has focused on the theory that it is these stem cells landing in a distant site that creates metastases, and not simply single cells that detach from the primary tumor and travel to another part of the body.
Although disseminated tumor cells, either in the bone marrow or lymph nodes, are already regarded as a prerequisite for relapse and metastasis, no studies have as yet examined these cells for the existence of the stem cell phenotype.
"The primary implication is that it is the stem cell population in cancers that are presumed to be the only cells capable of forming metastases," said Cote. "Metastasis is the most important event for determining outcome in cancer patients."
In the study, Cote and colleagues looked at 50 bone marrow specimens from women whose breast cancer was caught in its earliest stages, but in whom tumor cells were detected in the bone marrow. Using a newly developed immunohistochemical protocol, Cote and colleagues found the tumor cells from all patients contained a population of putative stem cells.
The presence of CD44 protein with the absence of CD24 protein defines the stem cell population of tumor cells. Only a small proportion of tumor cells at the primary tumor site in the breast have been shown to have the stem cell characteristics. It has been shown that only the stem cells have the ability to form metastases in experimental models.
What was surprising to Cote and his colleagues, who anticipated some stem cells within the disseminated tumor cells, was that the majority of the remote tumor cells have the stem cell characteristics, and that they appeared in the bone marrow of breast cancer patients whose disease was caught in the earliest stages.
"We know that the presence of disseminated tumor cells in the bone marrow is a bad feature, as it is an indicator of future metastases, but we didn't know if these were the cells that actually cause disease progression," said Cote. "This data suggest that the vast majority of patients with disseminated tumor cells may have a life-time risk for relapse. We definitely need to pursue molecular studies of these putative stem cells."
University of Southern California
Stem Cell Current Events and Stem Cell News RSSFirst reconstitution of an epidermis from human embryonic stem cells
Stem cell research is making great strides. This is yet again illustrated by a study carried out by the I-STEM* Institute (I-STEM/ Inserm UEVE U861/AFM), published in the Lancet on 21 November 2009. The I-STEM team, directed by Marc Peschanski has just succeeded in recreating a whole epidermis from human embryonic stem cells.
Your Own Stem Cells Can Treat Heart Disease
The largest national stem cell study for heart disease showed the first evidence that transplanting a potent form of adult stem cells into the heart muscle of subjects with severe angina results in less pain and an improved ability to walk. The transplant subjects also experienced fewer deaths than those who didn't receive stem cells.
U of M researchers find 2 units of umbilical cord blood reduce risk of leukemia recurrence
A new study from the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota shows that patients who have acute leukemia and are transplanted with two units of umbilical cord blood (UCB) have significantly reduced risk of the disease returning.
Researchers find potential treatment for Huntington's disease
Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham), the University of British Columbia's Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics and the University of California, San Diego have found that normal synaptic activity in nerve cells (the electrical activity in the brain that allows nerve cells to communicate with one another) protects the brain from the misfolded proteins associated with Huntington's disease.
Researchers 'notch' a victory toward new kind of cancer drug
Scientists have devised an innovative way to disarm a key protein considered to be "undruggable," meaning that all previous efforts to develop a drug against it have failed.
UCI embryonic stem cell therapy restores walking ability in rats with neck injuries
The first human embryonic stem cell treatment approved by the FDA for human testing has been shown to restore limb function in rats with neck spinal cord injuries - a finding that could expand the clinical trial to include people with cervical damage.
First use of antibody and stem cell transplantation to successfully treat advanced leukemia
For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have reported the use of a radiolabeled antibody to deliver targeted doses of radiation, followed by a stem cell transplant, to successfully treat a group of leukemia and pre-leukemia patients for whom there previously had been no other curative treatment options.
Immune therapy can protect against or treat later lymphoma
Specially developed immune system cells that target the common Epstein-Barr virus can protect immune-suppressed bone marrow transplant recipients against lymph system disease and cancers that arise from the viral infection.
Immunotherapy demonstrates long-term success in treating lymphoma
Targeted immunotherapy has been an attractive new therapeutic area for a number of cancers because it has the potential to destroy tumor cells without damaging surrounding normal tissue. New study results demonstrate high success rates using specialized white blood cells to prevent or treat lymphoma associated with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV-lymphoma) in patients who have received a hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).
Of mice and men: Stem cells and ethical uncertainties
The recent creation of live mice from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) not only represents a remarkable scientific achievement, but also raises important issues, according to bioethicists at The Johns Hopkins University's Berman Institute of Bioethics.
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