New discovery gives hope in fighting metastatic cancer

Newswise — Cancers that divide and develop in new organs around the body are significantly harder to fight. these Metastatic cancer, which has spread from the original cancer, adapts its metabolism to the growing tissue. This discovery is a breakthrough in our understanding of metastatic cancer and an important piece of the puzzle in the search for more effective treatments.

The human body’s metabolism can be compared to an internal engine. It is a prerequisite for our cells to grow and receive energy. As such, it is also an important target for cancer therapies that focus on stopping the progression of cancer cells.

A new study recently published in a scientific journal PNASChalmers’ system and synthetic biologists investigated how metabolism works in cancer cells that have spread to new organs via metastases (also called secondary tumors). This study has given researchers new insights into how metastases adapt to new environments.

“Clearly, the local environment influences cancer cells more than was previously known. Metastatic tumors should exhibit the same metabolic properties wherever they are located in the body, but cancer cells are more sensitive to their metabolism. found that it greatly adapts to new tissues, which is an important knowledge and shows that metastases cannot be regarded as the original tumor,” said Chalmers, Ph.D. in Systems and Synthetic Biology. Yes, said the study’s lead author, Fariba Roshanzamir.

Tools to disrupt cancer metabolism
Fariba Roshanzamir worked in the research group of Professor Jens Nielsen at Chalmers and was able to establish groundbreaking results together with her Swedish and international colleagues. Although the study was primarily focused on so-called triple-negative breast cancer (severe breast cancer that is difficult to treat with drugs), the researchers say the conclusions apply to all types of metastatic cancer. , opens new doors for developing more effective treatments.

“If you can stop a tumor’s metabolism, it will stop working. This research provides important keys to better understanding what to target and treat them as the original tumor.” That’s very important to be able to find good strategies for future treatments,” she says.

A New Look at the Properties of Transference
Cancer metastasis to new organs is one of the leading causes of death in cancer patients today. Jens Nielsen, a professor of systems and synthetic biology at Chalmers Institute of Technology and one of the study’s authors, hopes the study will lead to new insights into the properties and behavior of metastases.

“This is a breakthrough in our understanding of metastatic cancer and an important step on the way to more personalized medicine,” he says.

• article “Metastatic triple-negative breast cancer retains key metabolic signatures while adapting its metabolism to target tissues. “ (Link: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2205456119) was published in a scientific journal PNAS.
• The authors are Fariba Roshanzamir, Chalmers and University of Tehran, Jonathan L. Robinson, Chalmers, Daniel Cook, Chalmers, Mohammad Hossein Kalimi Jafari, University of Tehran and Jens Nielsen, Chalmers.
• This research was supported by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation.

Research details
This study examined metastatic tumors (also called secondary tumors) primarily in the lung, brain, triple-negative breast cancer, and (some) liver of skin cancer. Researchers have found that the metabolism of metastatic cancer cells is highly adapted to the tissue of the organ in which they grew. Indications ranged by organ, and metastatic tumors retained specific metabolic properties associated with the original tumor.