May 13, 2021
Controlling cancer depends on controlling tissue
microenvironments, according to researcher James DeGregori.
“There's going to be pressure on cells in the lungs of a smoker to
adapt to that new environment,” he explains, “and by adapting to
it, it can basically favor new phenotypes that could lead to a
malignancy that could lead to the initiation of a cancer.”
He and Richard discuss the initiation of cancer and cancer
evolution, opening up an exciting path toward prevention.
Listen and learn
- How cancer development stems from our own cells "going rogue" in concert with selective pressures, like carcinogenic conditions, in their tissue environment,
- Why, therefore, random mutations are important in the initiation of cancer, but not enough to explain its growth,
- Why effective prevention of cancer lies with controlling tissue microenvironments, and
- How modulating inflammation affects carcinogenesis pathology and may be key in cancer prevention.
James DeGregori is the Courtenay C. and Lucy Patten Davis
Endowed Chair in Lung Cancer Research, which is part of the
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at the University
of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.
He explains that genetics, biochemistry, and cell biology work
together to prepare the ground for cancer growth. While cancer
diagnosis and therapeutics often begin further down the line
followed by chemotherapy procedures, researchers like DeGregori are
trying to reconfigure the conditions that allow its beginnings.
He says it’s a matter of cells adapting to fit a changing tissue
environment; therefore, staving off that change in environment
looks to be essential. That means addressing chronic inflammation,
inflammation that might come from smoking and lungs failure and
other stressors.
But not all inflammation is created equal, and simply preventing
it entirely can lead to the inability to fight off infections, for
which inflammation is necessary. He adds that "there's two sides to
every process, and while too much inflammation is bad, we do need
inflammation to fight off infections, to repair our tissues, and
other processes."He and colleagues are working on finding that
balance as well as identifying which patients could benefit the
most.
Listen in for more about how researchers are arresting cancer
growth through addressing cell stress, cell aging, and
inflammation.
Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C