From: "Saul Pressman"
To: [email hidden]
Subject: Oxylist Re: Oxygen and Cancer
Date: Thu, 04 Feb 1999 17:42:35 PST
Dear Oxylisters,
Excerpt from The National Post for Wednesday, February 3, 1999
"CLUE TO SPREAD OF CANCER DISCOVERED"
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" Critical clues explaining why cancerous cells spread, uncovered by a
biologist at Queen's University, may have important implications for
future treatments, according to a leading international journal.
The findings of Dr. Charles Graham and a team of researchers at Queen's
University in Kingston, Ontario, published in the current issue of the
International Journal of cancer, suggest a link between oxygen levels in
cancerous tumors and the spread of the disease to other parts of the
body.
"Our research shows that the low levels of oxygen in malignant tumors
enhance the ability of the tumor cells to spread," said Dr. Graham. "So
by manipulating oxygen levels within the tumor, we may be able to
control the spreading of cancer to different parts of the body".
"We took breast cancer cells and put them under conditions of low oxygen
and we saw the cells became more aggressive and invasive..."
"To spread, tumor cells must be able to break down and invade
surrounding tissue barriers. Dr. Graham's research shows that hypoxia,
or low oxygen levels, in the tumor mass plays an important role in
stimulating the processes required for metastasis."
- National Post reporter Tom Arnold