Rejuvenation and Cancer
From CasGroup
(→Self-renewal and Stem Cells) |
|||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| + | |||
| + | == Rejuvenation and Cancer == | ||
| + | |||
| + | It is obvious that any mechanism which has the power to rejuvenate or regenerate | ||
| + | a system has also the power to destroy it: if the regeneration process goes | ||
| + | wrong, and something different is generated instead of the original system, | ||
| + | then the consequences are very severe. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Cancer itself is like uncontrolled "rejuvenation" in an organism: "rejuvenation" went awry. | ||
| + | Like stell cells or embryonic cells, cancer cells do not age and can proliferate | ||
| + | without limits. Cancer cells and small tumors influence their environment to increase | ||
| + | local blood supply. They act like embryonic cells, who proliferate vigorously, are | ||
| + | capable of extensive migration, and secrete factors that increase the local supply of blood. | ||
| + | In general one can find many similarities [http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=cancer-clues-from-embryos]: | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Tumor originating cells are like stem cells | ||
| + | * Tumors themselves are like embryos | ||
| + | * Tumor development resembles embryonic and fetal development | ||
| + | |||
== Self-renewal and Stem Cells == | == Self-renewal and Stem Cells == | ||
