4 ms·

This popped up in /r/worldnews yesterday with another source, where /u/sharplydressedman gave it some context [1]. > I hate to be a buzzkill, but the linked ar

This popped up in /r/worldnews yesterday with another source, where /u/sharplydressedman gave it some context [1]. > I hate to be a buzzkill, but the linked article is very sensationalist ... it entirely misses the point of the research published by the Anastasiadis lab (pubmed link [2]). Being able to stop or revert transformed cells in vitro is not new, we've been able to stop or revert tumor cells for decades.... > Tldr of this is that this is unexciting unless you're a researcher studying E-cadherin/B-catenin, and means very little to someone outside of the cell biology field. /u/squaresarerectangles provided a link to the original Nature Cell Biology paper, reproduced in citation [3]. [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/3idyjg/us_scientists_successfully_turn_human_cancer/cufspjw https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/3idyjg/us_scient... [2]http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26302406 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26302406 [3]http://www.nature.com/ncb/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ncb3227.html http://www.nature.com/ncb/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ncb3227...

joe_the_user 11y ago
Not to mention that killing cancer cells, which can be done in umpteen way in vitro and in vivo today, seems superior to reverting cells to normal, except on unusual circumstances. That is, I assume one would want to have a tumor die rather just stabilize as it's cell reverted to normal (if that's even possible). Also killing cells on the outside of tumor seems the most effective way to deliver drugs to the cells on the inside of a tumor. (Just speaking from common sense, if there's something I'm missing, I'd be interested).
- jszymborski 11y ago
  Relevant XKCD: https://xkcd.com/1217/ https://xkcd.com/1217/
runeks 11y ago
Isn't the big question WHY that cancer cell developed inside a human body in the first place? I mean, if it happened once, what would prevent it from happening again?

joe_the_user 11y ago

Not to mention that killing cancer cells, which can be done in umpteen way in vitro and in vivo today, seems superior to reverting cells to normal, except on unusual circumstances. That is, I assume one would want to have a tumor die rather just stabilize as it's cell reverted to normal (if that's even possible). Also killing cells on the outside of tumor seems the most effective way to deliver drugs to the cells on the inside of a tumor. (Just speaking from common sense, if there's something I'm missing, I'd be interested).

jszymborski 11y ago
Relevant XKCD: https://xkcd.com/1217/ https://xkcd.com/1217/

runeks 11y ago

Isn't the big question WHY that cancer cell developed inside a human body in the first place? I mean, if it happened once, what would prevent it from happening again?