Israeli researchers find potential new treatment for leukemia
The research found that blocking the fatty acid production of cancerous cells may "starve" the cells and prevent them from spreading in the brain.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFAssaf is only 9 years old and has already had to face life-threatening cancer(photo credit: Courtesy)
In a breakthrough in the treatment of leukemia, a team of Israeli and Scottish researchers have found a medicine that may be effective in preventing the cancer from spreading to the brain.The research was focused on acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the most common cancer in children. The treatment for this type of leukemia is difficult and accompanied by many side effects that may appear years after patients go into recession.The research found that blocking the fatty acid production of cancerous cells may "starve" the cells and prevent them from spreading in the brain.The findings and treatment may prove to be relevant for other types of cancer in children and adults.Due to the fact that one of the most dangerous potential effects of the illness is the spread of the cancer to the brain, the current treatment includes an injection of chemotherapy into the patients' spinal fluid and often also includes radiation, which is the cause of potential serious side effects.Researchers found that cancerous cells were creating fatty acids when they spread to the brain because the brain does not have enough of them to sustain the cancerous cells. Using medicines that prevent the creation of fatty acids in mice starved cancer cells and prevented the development of cancer in the brain.The findings were published in the journal Nature Cancer. Researchers came from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Schneider Children’s Medical Center for Israel, Tel Aviv University and University of Glasgow. The research was led by three young female researchers, Angela Maria Savino, Sara Isabel Fernandes and Orianne Olivares.
