New target could halt growth, spread of ovarian cancer
The finding has potential to lead to a treatment to prevent or limit ovarian cancer in women at high risk. The researchers looked at EGFL6, a growth factor that drives cell growth and regulates stem cells. It's best known for its role in hair follicles. Researchers suspected it might also play a role in ovarian cancer stem cells. When they triggered EGFL6 in ovarian cancer cells, it stimulated the cancer to grow two to three times faster. This held in both cell lines and in mice. When researchers eliminated the EGFL6, tumors grew very poorly, about four times more slowly. Results appear in Cancer Research . Researchers found that EGFL6 acts specifically on cancer stem cells. Cancer stem cells are believed to fuel the growth and spread of cancer. They are often resistant to current chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Teaming with engineers, researchers used microfluidic chambers to look at how individual cells behaved. They found EGFL6 caused the cancer stem cells to d...