Stay Healthy

In cracking the genetic code and certain "epigenetic" features of a rare pancreatic cancer called Neuroendorcine or islet cell tumors, scientists at Johns Hopkins in the US have discovered clues as to why some patients live twice as long as others, bolstering the idea that perhaps cancers should be classified by the type of genes involved and not just by organ or cell type.
The researchers said their findings also show the importance of targeting the "epigenetics" of cancer, that is the processes that influence what genes do but occur outside of the underlying DNA chemistry of genes, when developing genetic treatments for the disease.
You can read how Dr Nickolas Papadopoulos, associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore, Maryland, and colleagues came to their findings in the 20 January online issue of Science.
Papadopoulos told the press that:
"One of the most significant things we learned is that each patient with this kind of rare cancer has a unique genetic code that predicts how aggressive the disease is and how sensitive it is to specific treatments."
Pancreatic neuroendorcine tumors (also called PanNETs) are rare but clinically important form of pancreatic cancer and account of about 5 per cent of all pancreatic cancers.
Some PanNETs release hormones that cause significant changes in the body, including variations in blood sugar levels, weight gain, and skin rashes. In Contrast, without these effects, the hormone-free tumors grow silently in the pancreas.
Co-author Dr Ralph Hruban, professor of pathology and oncology, and director of the Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center at Johns Hopkins, said the hormone-free tumors were often difficult to distinguish from other pancreatic cancer types.