SCIENTISTS KILL CANCERS IN MICE BY STARVING TUMORS OF BLOOD.Byline: Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. University of Texas scientists are destroying cancerous tumors in mice by engineering blood clots Blood Clots Definition A blood clot is a thickened mass in the blood formed by tiny substances called platelets. Clots form to stop bleeding, such as at the site of cut. that starve the tumors to death, an advance that could be tested in people within two years. The therapy, much like killing a plant by cutting its roots, caused rapid cancer-cell death within 24 hours, Dr. Philip Thorpe of UT's Southwestern Medical Center reports today in the journal Science. Two weeks later, tumors had disappeared in 38 percent of the mice and had shrunk by more than half in an additional 24 percent. Much work is needed to prove the treatment could work in people. But it could one day offer doctors a less toxic alternative to chemotherapy for breast, lung, ovarian and other cancers. ``It would be wonderful,'' said Dr. James Pluda, a National Cancer Institute senior drug investigator. ``What this paper demonstrates is proof of the concept that . . . this kind of therapy can be effective.'' Said Harvard University Harvard University, mainly at Cambridge, Mass., including Harvard College, the oldest American college. Harvard College Harvard College, originally for men, was founded in 1636 with a grant from the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. professor Dr. Judah Folkman Judah Folkman (b. 24 February 1933) is an American cellular scientist best known for his research on angiogenesis and vasculogenesis. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Folkman attended Ohio State University and then Harvard Medical School. , whose research into blood vessels Blood vessels Tubular channels for blood transport, of which there are three principal types: arteries, capillaries, and veins. Only the larger arteries and veins in the body bear distinct names. that feed tumors formed a foundation for the discovery: ``This is very promising and very elegant work.'' Solid tumors, which represent most major cancers, depend on blood for oxygen and nutrients. Blood vessels grow rampantly through the cancer mass, often making surgery difficult because of heavy bleeding. The vessels eventually snake into other organs and spread the malignancy. Thorpe theorized that clogging vessels deep inside a tumor would make it die from the inside out. The question was how to avoid life-threatening blood clots in arteries throughout the body. To create an intravenous drug, Thorpe used a human protein called tissue factor, or TF, that is vital in helping people's blood clot blood clot n. A semisolid, gelatinous mass of coagulated blood that consists of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets in a fibrin network. . So the TF in this drug dose wouldn't coagulate coagulate /co·ag·u·late/ (-lat) to undergo coagulation. co·ag·u·late v. To change from the liquid state to a solid or gel; clot. on the way through the bloodstream to the tumor, he removed the molecule that would allow it to latch onto normal cells. Then Thorpe attached a homing device, an antibody that recognizes a substance found only inside the tumor's blood vessels. And once that substance hooks TF to these tumor vessels, the TF starts creating blood clots inside the tumor. Clogged vessels appeared throughout mouse tumors in 30 minutes and caused rapid cancer-cell death within 24 hours. Two weeks later, tumors large enough to be the equivalent of 2-5 pounds in a person had died in 38 percent of the mice. |
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