Scientists Have Discovered A New Way To Kill Cancer Cells

[CountAllVotes]

Scientists at London's Institute for Cancer Research announced last night they've discovered a new way of killing malignant tumors.

According to UK Express, the discovery puts to rest the belief that the only way cancer cells can be killed is through a process called apoptosis. That condition is often blocked by cancer cells, which causes many drugs to be ineffective.

The new process is called necroptosis and kills tumors by circumventing the cells defenses and activating a set of proteins that force the cells into this type of death.

The discovery sheds light on why many people fail to respond to chemotherapy and brings hope for targeted treatments that will kill cells resistant to apoptosis.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/necroptosis-scientists-have-discoverd-a-new-way-to-kill-cancer-cells-2011-7#ixzz1RW1EAqcC

This brings cause for a real possibility for a cure for cancer. I sure hope this research continues!

[notadmblnd]

1. they will never cure cancer, or the cost of treating it will be cost prohibitive that only the rich

will be cured. There is too much money to be made off people having it and dying from it.

[CountAllVotes]

3. thanks for the hope

I'll be sure to pass on your perspective to my dead relatives. :(

[notadmblnd]

5. So, you only wanted positive comments to your OP?

You should have said that. We all have relatives that have died with cancer. I am truly sorry for your losses.

[we can do it]

10. My Thoughts Exactly

[trotsky]

4. Oh bullshit.

We now have 85%+ 10-year survival rates for many types of cancer, including melanoma, leukemia, prostate, testicular, and thyroid.

[notadmblnd]

6. is DU where people come just to express their outrage?

Used to be, people could express their opinion with our being sworn at. To be angry so early in the morning, can't be good for a person.

[trotsky]

7. Used to be, people were expected to have facts to back up their opinion.

There is no doubt that we need to worry about people having access to, and being able to afford treatments. But to claim that companies don't WANT to cure cancer because dying is more profitable, that's just irresponsible and ridiculous. Even thinking about it from the "evul big pharma" conspiracy angle: don't you think they'd rather have you live as long as possible, so you can end up on one (or many) of their maintenance drugs in your old age?

[xchrom]

8. this post

:thumbsup:

[notadmblnd]

16. Can you show me where it says that in the rules?

Your help will be greatly appreciated.

[trotsky]

20. Can you show me where it says in the rules I can't combat ignorance?

Thanks!

[whathehell]

9. It often seems so, unfortunately. n/t

[mucifer]

12. Here's some FACTS you probably don't want to hear:

Progress in Childhood Cancer

Since the mid-1950s, cooperative research has improved the survival rates for childhood cancer from less than 10% to almost 80% overall. Cure rates vary according to each specific type of childhood cancer. Some types remain very difficult to cure. All cure rates need to be improved.

Multi-institution cooperative research of major scope has also paid dividends well beyond childhood cancer, contributing to:

understanding the abnormal biology of cancer cells,
treatments for adults with cancer,
developing principles of team management for other diseases of children and adults, and
pioneering the enormous advantages of multi-institution cooperation in clinical research.


http://www.curesearch.org/our_research/index_sub.aspx?id=1473

Curesearch is a government website for researchers and families of children with cancer.

BTW I'm a pediatric hospice nurse and I like the fact that they are continuing to do research to help people with cancer.

[izquierdista]

14. Who pays for this?

The government that the Republicans want to cut, that's who. These researchers don't work for pharmaceutical companies, they work for universities under NIH and NSF grants. Pharmaceutical companies only swoop in at the later stages when there is a quick buck to be made patenting a drug and selling it for "what the market will bear". This needs to be thrown in the face of those who believe in smaller government.

[LeftishBrit]

17. How is there 'profit from people dying from it'?

Even from the most cynical point of view, if you die, then you're no longer in a position to buy anything! There's much more profit in enabling people to live to be old; the elderly are by far the biggest consumers of pharmaceuticals.

Yes, it is important to ensure that necessary medications are kept affordable.

[notadmblnd]

21. The entire process of dying from cancer is very profitible

You have the Dr.s, the referrals, the specialists, The tests, the "cure" and the maintenance program after the cure to keep the cancer from re-occurring. Even with insurance, it is only the rich that get through the current horrendously expensive treatment financially unscathed. Then the government saves money when when people do die prematurely from it. And then there's the funeral industry.

Yes, there is a lot of money to be made in the process of dying from cancer and everyone, if they live long enough, will get some form of cancer. I never said the process would not be long and drawn out. Sure there are individuals out there that do have noble intentions and do have amazing breakthroughs, but look how various industries lobby against these sort of breakthroughs. A fine example is the HPV vaccine issue. No, I do not believe a cure for cancer will be allowed to be implemented unless and until it is more expensive than the process of dying.

[trotsky]

22. More false information from you.

"it is only the rich that get through the current horrendously expensive treatment financially unscathed"

The cancer survivors I know were not rich. They were lucky enough to have insurance, yes, but they have resumed their lives and have not been financially punished for the disease.

"Then the government saves money when when people do die prematurely from it."

So you are claiming, simultaneously, that mysterious evil forces both want us to live long enough with cancer to make a whole bunch of money off of us, but also die from it early to save money on us. Okey dokey then.

"And then there's the funeral industry."

Oh yes, those evil blood-sucking funeral directors. They make millions and live the high life. Uh, have you ever actually met someone who works in the "funeral industry"? Because if you had, I don't think you'd be attacking them.

It's unbelievable the amount of opinion you are throwing out there as fact when there is absolutely nothing to back you up on it.

(And by the way, the HPV vaccine certainly IS a fine example. An example that completely rips your position to shreds. Here we have a vaccine that prevents cervical cancer that costs a tiny fraction of what the treatment for full-blown cervical cancer would be. Yet that vaccine was made by the same people YOU claim want to make a whole bunch of money off us as we die from cancer. Say what?)

[trotsky]

2. Just as "cancer" isn't just one single disease,

there will never just be one single "cure" for cancer. The more weapons we have at our disposal, the more effective we will be at finally vanquishing this foe that has been with us forever. K&R!

[valerief]

11. Lucky for the rich. They'll be the only ones this treatment will be available to.

After all, they need to make money off the rest of us dying.

[LeftishBrit]

18. How does anyone (except funeral directors) 'make money off people dying'!?

I can see that RW governments may not want to *spend* money on *preventing* people from dying, but that is a different issue and certainly one to be fought fiercely.

I know quite a few people who've been cured of cancer, and wouldn't have if they'd lived 50 years ago. Childhood cancer in particular has a much better prognosis than in the past. For instance, 50 years ago, virtually all children with leukemia died. Nowadays, over 80% are cured.

30 years ago, though children with leukemia were beginning to be cured, adults with the disease usually died. Now, though the prognosis is less good than for children, even adults have a 50% cure rate.

Of course, there is still a LOT of room for improvement. We have all known too many people who have died of cancer, and it would be great if the disease could be conquered! In fact, 'cancer' is not one disease but many; just as 'infection' is not one disease but many. It would be great if the same progress could be made with cancers as has been made with many infections.

[HereSince1628]

13. I think there is a failure here to grasp what is being announced

This announcement is about a phenomenon called regulated cell death. What is being hoped for is a way to manipulate cell-death in cancerous cells. In a sense, induced cellular suicide.

Apoptosis, also known as programmed cell death, has been known for a long time, and it is a mechanism that can rid multicelluar animals of cells that fail to proceed normally through checkpoints of cell division (cancer is a form of out of control cell division). Apoptosis is a normal ongoing protective process in our lives. It has been suggested in many textbooks that in each of our lives dozens of potential cancers are terminated by this regulatory mechanism. Unfortunately, not all precancerous cells undergo apoptosis, some of them proliferate and cause cancer.

What is being reported is a new kind of regulated cellular suicide. Necroptosis was discovered a few years ago. It doesn't use the same biochemical pathways as apoptosis (which is good because those pathways are being circumvented by many types of cancer). So, this new type of regulated cell death MIGHT provide an alternative means to induce cell death in cancer cells. Down the road many years, a therapy would depend on being able to activate the pathways of necroptosis in cancerous cells but to a lesser extent (ideally, not at all) in healthy cells. The therapy wouldn't stop dysfunctional potentially cancerous cells from forming, but rather, would provide a new approach to killing them once they occur.

[CountAllVotes]

15. this was exactly my reason for posting this

This new discovery might kill the cancer cells. This is indeed a breakthrough!

As for the rest of the negative comments above, all I can say is that I hope none of these people ever have to deal with cancer and see how quickly it kills.

If the cells can be killed before the person, this is indeed a spectacular discovery! :)

Thank you for you post!

[Chemisse]

19. Thanks for that elaboration.

Often these articles avoid real scientific explanations.