When I started deep research I used to regret not being a PhD because almost all scientists seem to be PhDs. But now I feel that it has been a blessing as it has allowed me to be able to view a research topic in 3D. Almost all PhDs specialise and narrow focus to create expertise in a particular niche. Nothing wrong with that and great discoveries have resulted from such an approach. But for working towards curing a disease ability to learn and analyze on a multifactorial basis it seems improves the chances of finding a cure rather than incremental benefit.
My thirst for knowledge and research continues to rise by every passing day it seems. In my leisure time if I have an option to either watch a movie, read a book or discover new music I end up choosing to research. Either thats where I get my highest pleasure or I have probably become a scientist in heat. Probably entering the last mile of a scheduled jump in clinical validation of my scientific discoveries.
In my research journey I continue to evolve my knowledge about a target and my own conclusions about it. So there are studies and there are studies but some become milestones after which we view the subject with new eyes like Sinclair’s NAD+, Conboy's parabiosis, Katcher's HPE and Hayashi's reversal of aging cells with glycine. Today I want to share two posts which cover studies which should have been ranked as major breakthroughs but may have been missed in the clutter.
My spotlight is on the two subjects I have done the most posts on this blog: cancer and aging. The irony is that both are highly related and are in fact two sides of the same coin. Unchecked growth can lead to cancer and systemic decay is a hallmark of aging. Let’s first look at cancer:
CANCER: Cure for cancer may emerge from a combination therapy of immunotherapy and blocking proteins that help cancer metastasis. Metastasis is behind 90% of cancer deaths. I have covered immunotherapy in my earlier post. Today I want to share a remarkable study:
Hasini Jayatilika a post doctoral researcher at John Hopkins came out with a brilliant conclusion: Metastasis occurs not after the tumour reaches a certain size as it is believed but due to tumour density. During a lecture while she was still studying at John Hopkins she saw a similar diagram regarding how bacteria proliferate. She tried to find some study in cancer showing that. Couldn’t find it so she took up that hunt herself. 7 years of research and she demonstrated how after reaching a certain density tumour cells begin to release two proteins Interleukin 6 and Interleukin 8. They tell the new cancer cells that it is getting too crowded separate out and build your own nest at some other site. She observed this after studying the communications between cancer cells.
She and her Professor Denis Wirtz found out that all the cancer therapeutics were being built to target the primary tumour and no one was working drugs that could block the metastasis. They then themselves set out to test two already approved drugs which were known to work on the Interleukin receptors called Tocilizumab a rheumatoid arthritis treatment and Reparixin a potential cancer drug. When combined they seemed to significantly slow down the metastasis. Hasini feels that some tuning or another combination could potentially stop all proliferation completely. The amazing thing is that this may be applicable to all solid tumours. This is very good news for cancer patients as 90% of cancer deaths are caused by metastasis. My blog post “Goodbye Chemotherapy” already discussed how immunotherapy can attack only the cancer cells. But as I had pointed out in a following post about metastasis and mother cells – the cancer stem cells causing the lethal proliferation which may not be addressed by immunotherapy alone. With this combination therapy of immunotherapy and blocking of interleukin 6 and 8 proteins there might be complete cure which may prevent a relapse after clearance. All patients with solid tumours should talk to their doctors about the feasibility of prescribing this combination to put a break to any event of metastasis. Of course keep in mind that although both are approved drugs a combination therapy for metastasis has still not been approved by FDA. Another good news is that these drugs do not cause the horrible side effects of chemotherapies. So a doctor may make their own decision based on patients parameters and each drugs safety profile. I rate this as a major breakthrough for cancer survival making Hasini a rock star hero for cancer patients worldwide.
