Professor Ashok Venkitaraman reported his research on unstable chromosomes
With just 24 hours’ notice, Professor Ashok Venkitaraman stepped in at the NCRI conference to deliver an enlightening talk on how chromosomes become unstable in cancer, after the planned speaker had to cancel at the last moment.
Professor Venkitaraman’s specialist field is ‘chromosome instability’ – the way the cell’s genetic information becomes more and more garbled in the development and progression of cancer.
His goals are to understand exactly how chromosomal instability can drive the development of cancer, and to translate this knowledge into advances in cancer diagnosis and treatment.
As well as the latest news, the show features interviews with Cancer Research UK’s Professor Charles Coombes and Dr John Stingl, and the lowdown on proton radiotherapy from Professor Karen Kirkby.
There’s also a fun Kitchen Science experiment to try at home, explaining how ultrasound works – a technique that’s sometimes used to diagnose cancer.
Dr Norton suggests that 'self-seeding' cancers are like a bed of weeds
Could cancer cells not only spread away from a tumour but also return to it from other distant parts of the body? That’s the theory presented on Sunday at the NCRI Cancer Conference by Dr Larry Norton of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, USA. The news has already hit the headlines, including the front page of the Daily Express.
This new concept could shed light on the way in which cancer spreads – a process called metastasis. Cancer cells can move away from a primary tumour to form new secondary tumours elsewhere in the body.
But Dr Norton thinks that wandering cancer cells could return to the site of the primary cancer and fuel its growth. And it could explain why – in some cases at least – secondary cancers turn up long after treatment has eliminated the main tumour.
Here’s a short interview with Dr Norton, explaining more about his ideas:
More than 45,500 women and around 300 men are diagnosed with breast cancer every year in the UK, making it the most common cancer. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so we ‘ve put together a special podcast to reflect this.
Many breast cancers are picked up by women themselves – but what should you be checking for? Cancer Information Nurse Jean Slocombe tells us about the key signs and symptoms to look for, and highlights the importance of going for regular breast screening when invited.
Radiologist Dr Sarah Burnett knew that her family history put her at increased risk of breast cancer. But she was still shocked when she noticed something unusual on her own mammogram. We talk to Dr Sarah about her story, and why she’s helping to raise money for Cancer Research UK’s vital work.
Finally, we meet Professor Charles Coombes, one of the most distinguished breast cancer researchers in the UK. Professor Coombes’ work helped to lead to the development of aromatase inhibitors – drugs that are powerful weapons in our fight against breast cancer.
Professor Coombes explains why some breast cancers can come back after treatment, even after many years, and how he and his team are developing new treatments to help women survive for longer.
To listen, simply click the player below:
Alternatively, go to the podcast homepage, where you can hear the show directly through our own Flash player.
Hope you enjoy it – please let us know what you think by responding here in the comments. We’ll be back next month with a special podcast dedicated to breast cancer.
Are antioxidants good for you? Many people believe that the answer to this question is yes, and some think that antioxidants might even help prevent cancer. We’ve posted about this before, and as yet the evidence is far from conclusive – at least as far as cancer’s concerned.
Now new research is set to make matters more complicated. A paper published last month in the journal Nature suggests antioxidants may actually help keep cancer cells alive. This doesn’t mean that supplementing your diet with antioxidants or eating foods that contain them will cause cancer, but it certainly shows that there isn’t yet a clear idea of how antioxidants are involved in the disease.
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