Similarities of small cell cancers to blood cancers could lead to better treatments

An interdisciplinary team of UCLA scientists has found that small cell neuroendocrine cancers from a range of tissues have a common molecular signature and share drug sensitivities with blood cancers. The discoveries could improve the diagnoses of these aggressive cancers and lead to the development of new treatments that build upon the lessons learned from successful blood cancer therapies.The study, led by senior authors  Thomas Graeber and Dr. Owen Witte,  both of the UCLA Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research and Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center,  waspublished in Cancer Cell.Small neuroendocrine cell cancers — also known as small cell cancers — are a deadly cancer subtype, defined by their characteristics under the microscope. They are fast-growing, treatment-resistant and can appear in a range of epithelial tissues. They are most commonly found in the lungs, with rare cases occurring in the prosta te, bladder, breast and skin. Small cell cancers may become increasingly common as non-small cell cancers can transform into this highly aggressive type to resist treatment.“Transformation to the small cell type has become an ‘escape route’ that cancers use to evade the effects of targeted therapies,” said Graeber, director of the UCLA Metabolomics Center and professor of molecular and medical pharmacology. “Our group is looking for commonalities that can be targeted by drugs to treat these cancers and prevent ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news