Chemotherapy May Help Spread Cancer

Breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer. Metastasis, or the development of a secondary malignant growth distance from a primary site of cancer, greatly increases the risk of death from cancer. Researchers have investigated the entry of cancer cells in the blood vessels, a process known as intravasation, and discovered that chemotherapy treatment can also increase this process causing the malignant cells to migrate. In other words, chemotherapy may increase the aggressiveness of cancer by spreading it throughout the body - thereby increasing the disease's fatality.

Image from Kielcoloncancer.org

Groups of cells, collectively known as tumor microenvironment of metastasis (TMEM), can serve as gateways for tumor cells entering the blood vessels. The researchers observed that several types of chemotherapy can increase the amounts of TMEM complexes and circulating tumor cells in the bloodstream (Karagiannis et al., 2017).

Dr. Karagiannis, the lead author of the study, found the number of doorways was increased in 20 patients receiving two common chemotherapy drugs. It should be noted such a small sample size constitutes a major limitation of this study, the results and implications of this research are very significant.

Solutions

While prevention is by far the best cure for chronic disease, not everyone has this luxury. A number of modifiable risk factors are responsible for many premature or preventable diseases and deaths. Modifiable risk factors fall into three main groups (Danaei et al., 2011):

• Lifestyle risk factors, such as tobacco smoking, physical activity, and alcohol use.
• Dietary risk factors, such as a high salt intake or a low intake of fruits and vegetables.
• Metabolic risk factors, such having high blood pressure or blood cholesterol and being overweight or obese.

In regards to dietary interventions, numerous studies have substantiated the chemopreventative effect of increasing cruciferous vegetable intake against cancer. As a chemoprevention agent, sulforaphane, the active molecule in cruciferous vegetables, possesses many advantages, such as high bioavailability and low toxicity (Li et al., 2010).

Click Here for More information about Cruciferous Vegetables

Increasing the consumption of cruciferous vegetables is only one of the many preventive measures that can be taken when taking control of your health. Remember, the health of your environment reflects the health of your body; you are the product of your environment.

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References

Karagiannis, G., Pastoriza, J., Wang, Y., Harney, A., Entenberg, D., & Pignatelli, J. et al. (2017). Neoadjuvant chemotherapy induces breast cancer metastasis through a TMEM-mediated mechanism. Cancer, 9(397). http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/scitranslmed.aan0026

Li, Y., Zhang, T., Korkaya, H., Liu, S., Lee, H., & Newman, B. et al. (2010). Sulforaphane, a Dietary Component of Broccoli/Broccoli Sprouts, Inhibits Breast Cancer Stem Cells. Clinical Cancer Research, 16(9), 2580-2590. http://dx.doi.org/10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-09-2937