Lung Cancer Biology Differs by Race, Study Shows
Research findings could help improve personalized treatments for lung cancer patients.
ALL CANCEROUS TUMORS contain cells that divide rapidly. There are many genetic mutations and proteins that can cause tumor cells to grow uncontrollably. A recent study suggests there are racial differences in tumor biology—a finding that might help scientists develop better personalized cancer treatments.
The study, published Dec. 1, 2017, in Clinical Cancer Research, compared tumor tissue and, when possible, healthy tissue from 64 African-American patients and 74 white patients who had surgery to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) between 1998 and 2014. The researchers analyzed the cells’ messenger RNA—the molecules that carry the genetic information needed to make proteins—and their microRNA, which regulates gene expression. Their goal was to identify the molecular interactions inside the cancer cells that were causing the tumor to grow. They found NSCLC tumors in white patients were more likely to have molecular interactions that sent messages to the cancer cells to divide and grow. However, the NSCLC tumors in African-American patients were more likely to use stem cell pathways to help the tumor invade other tissue.
Read more at Cancer Today, here.
Image: Cancer Today.