The
research, carried out in cancer cells and mice, shows that in cancers with faulty
versions of the KRAS gene these TRAIL receptors actually help the cancer cells
to grow and spread to new areas in the body.
These KRAS
faults occur in 95 per cent of pancreatic cancers and 30 per cent of non
small cell lung cancers.
Lead researcher Professor
Henning Walczak (UCL Cancer Institute) said: “Our research has unveiled a new strategy used by
some pancreatic and non small cell lung cancers to overcome our body’s natural
defences against cancer. By understanding the faults in these cancers we think
we can develop more tailored treatments, which could one day provide
urgently-needed options for patients with these types of pancreatic and non
small cell lung cancers.”
Each year in
Great Britain 32,500 people are diagnosed with non small cell lung cancer and
around 8,600 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Survival for these
cancers has not shown much improvement for 40 years.
Nell Barrie,
senior science information manager at Cancer Research UK, said: “Sadly survival
from pancreatic and lung cancers remains far too low, partly because these
cancers are very difficult to treat once they have spread.
“We urgently
need better treatments, so it’s vital to delve deeper into the molecular workings
of these cancers to find ways to combat them. This research may one day help us
find a way to block cancer spread, which would be a vital step to save more lives.”