A significant step towards blocking colon cancer could be on the horizon.
Researchers from the Australian National University have found a way to use medicine to trigger a cancer-preventing protein that can eliminate damaged DNA from the body “like a light switch.”
Describing the protein Ku70, lead researcher Dr. Abhimanu Pandey said: “When activated, the protein acts as a surveillance system, identifying signs of damaged DNA in our cells.”
Pandey further explained that the presence of “damaged DNA” is usually an early indication that cells could turn cancerous. Ku70 has the potential to reverse or at least put a stop to the damage.
“Our study indicates that Ku70 can help ‘cool off’ cancer cells and clean up damaged DNA. The protein prevents the cancer cells from becoming more aggressive and spreading throughout the body, effectively deactivating them and keeping them in a dormant state.”
Existing drugs have the potential to activate the protein that detects cancer warning signs. ChrisChrisW
In 2020, the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention reported 126,240 cases of colorectal cancer in the United States.
During that year, it caused the deaths of 51,869 people.
As highlighted in the study, in Australia where the research was conducted, 100 individuals die weekly from a type of bowel cancer.
However, the data, now published in Science Advances, demonstrates that 90% of cases could be effectively treated if detected early on.
“Early detection and treatment are crucial not just for bowel cancer but potentially for other cancers as well,” researcher Si Ming Man said.
