New method reveals cellular makeup of environments that favor metastatic cancer growth

Summary: Scientists at Baylor College of Medicine found a sneaky trick cancer uses to spread to bones. When cancer cells travel to the bone, they give fat molecules to immune cells called macrophages. This turns on a protein called ERα (estrogen receptor alpha).

Instead of fighting the disease, these immune cells become "bodyguards." They build a wall that stops other immune cells (T-cells) from attacking the tumor. Surprisingly, this happens in both men and women! The good news? Doctors might be able to use existing estrogen-blocking drugs to fire these bodyguards, letting the body fight the cancer again.

For more details, see rssapp-bcm-edu-news at bcm.edu/news/new-method-reveals-cellular-makeup-of-environments-that-favor-metastatic-cancer-growth (opens in new tab)