Tumors Make Their Own Blood Vessels- New Implications in Cancer Therapy
It was a bit surprising to read that tumors can make their own blood vessels. Two recent studies published simultaneously in a recent issue of the journal Nature claim that they have confirmed the ability of tumor cells to differentiate into blood vessels that extend the blood ciruculation network to supply nutrients and oxygen to fast growing tumor cells.
The report on these publications was published in the science news publication SciGuru.com. According the online science magazine, this finding is very significant in the context of cancer treatment, as one of the methods to treat cancer is by cutting off blood vessels to the cancerous growth.
Sciguru.com adds: “It is unclear how these results will impact the use of Avastin (Bevacizumab), an inhibitor of blood vessel formation (angiogenesis), in the treatment of cancer. We have recently reported the FDA reconsideration of Bevacizumab in breast cancer treatment”.
“Both studies were on glioblastoma, a tumor of the brain. It is possible that the same mechanism may be involved in other solid tumors, and their metastasis. However, the study resutls not rule out the significance of Avastin (Bevacizumab), rather complement this drug suggesting additional drug targets may also be considered together with Avastin in the control of aggressive tumors”.
Read fully story at SciGuru.com