Both before and after aggressive cancer cells spread, the vascular channels form characteristic patterns in human cancer patients that resemble those that are seen only in early embryos, Hendrix said.
Folberg added, "Because these patterns can be identified through angiographs or by specialized ultrasound, it may be possible to develop new non-invasive imaging tests to detect aggressive cancers. These tests may complement and perhaps even substitute for some forms of invasive biopsies."
Although the UI researchers focused their attention on ocular and skin melanoma, they have preliminary data suggesting that this phenomenon may occur in other tumors. The researchers are awaiting scientific peer review before they release any additional information.
Because this study deals with new and novel concepts in cancer biology, the American Journal of Pathology article is accompanied by a commentary by Mina Bissell, a noted breast cancer researcher and Life Sciences Division director at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The journal Science also plans to include a story on the UI findings in its Sept. 3 issue.
In addition to Hendrix, and Maniotis, the other researchers from Hendrix's lab who were involved in this study included Angela Hess, UI graduate student, and Elisabeth Seftor, research specialist. Folberg's research assistant Lynn Gardner also contributed to this investigation, as did Jacob Pe'er from the Hadassah University Hospital, and Jeffrey M. Trent and Paul S. Meltzer from the National Insititues of Health (NIH), Human Genome Research Institute.
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Contact: Jennifer Cronin
jennifer-cronin@uiowa.edu
319-335-9917
University of Iowa
30-Aug-1999