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- October 15, 2014 at 7:37 pm
Scientists have found 'breadcrumb trail' molecule that causes melanoma to spread
Apparently there’s a fatty molecule that irresistibly lures skin cancer cells around the body.
Scientific research has identified a type of fatty molecule that can make cancerous melanoma cells unusually aggressive and mobile, allowing it to spread round the body
The researchers have been looking at a fatty molecule known as lysophosphatidic acid (LPA).
Tests on lab cells and mice revealed how melanoma cells start their journey round the body by breaking down a nearby source of LPA.
Once they have depleted their original supply of the molecule, the skin cancer cells move out of their tumour in a bid to find more. They then move from molecule to molecule as if following a breadcrumb trail around the body.
Tagged: cutaneous melanoma
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