regional medical center: Why Do Cancer Rates Increase As We Age?

Jumat, 06 Juli 2012

Why Do Cancer Rates Increase As We Age?

Why Do Cancer Rates Increase As We Age?

Editor's Choice
Main Category: Cancer / Oncology
Also Included In: Genetics
Article Date: 06 Jul 2012 - 9:00 PDT

email to a friend Â

printer friendly Â

opinions Â <!--

rate article
Patient / Public: not yet rated

Healthcare Prof: not yet rated

As we age, our risk of developing cancer increases, now researchers at the University of Colorado Cancer Center say that this is because our tissue landscape changes as we age.

The study is published in the journal Oncogene.

James DeGregori, Ph.D., researcher at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and professor of molecular biology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, explained:

"If you look at Mick Jagger in 1960 compared to Mick Jagger today, it's obvious that his tissue landscape has changed. And it's this change, not the accumulation of cancer-causing mutations, that drives cancer rates higher as we grow older."

According to DeGregori, an individual already accumulates a large percentage of the mutations they will have during their lifetime by the time they stop growing in their teens.

He explains: "There's a mismatch between the mutation curve and the cancer curve, meaning that if cancer were due to reaching a tipping point of say, five or six mutations, we should see higher cancer rates in 20-year-olds, as this is when mutation rate is highest."

Furthermore, healthy tissues are also full of oncogenic mutations. DeGregori says: "These mutations are many times more common than the cancers associated with them." In other words, more mutations do not mean more cancer.

In addition, DeGregori explains that as humans have evolved, our bodies have had to develop new mechanisms to maintain our tissues and avoid disease.

He explains: "But we're no better at preventing mutations than our yeast or bacteria cousins. You'd think if avoiding mutations was key to avoiding cancer, we'd be better at it than we are."

DeGregori also argues that if these oncogenes were able to take over surrounding tissue, then introducing oncogenes into mice stem cells should help these cells survive instead of hurting them. He continued: "Rather stem cells harboring the oncogenes tend to get weeded out."

According to DeGregori, the reason the risk of cancer increases with age is because the mechanisms that we have when we are younger to fight cancer deteriorate.

DeGregori said:

"It's like what happened to the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Dinosaurs were great and they weren't changing that fast - they were well adapted to their landscape. Until that darn meteor. Suddenly what was fit was no longer fit. The species didn't have to change their mutation rate - it was the new landscape that drove speciation. Similarly, what primarily drives cancer rates higher as we age is the changed landscape."

The body's healthy cells function best for healthy, younger tissue conditions. When this balance is changed, for instance, through oncogenic mutation, the cells no longer represent the optimum fit for the surroundings, as healthy cells in young bodies quickly become more successful than cells with cancerous mutations.

He concluded: "When tissue is old, healthy cells are no longer a perfect fit, and mutations might help a cancer cell adapt in ways a healthy cell can't."

Written by Grace Rattue
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Additional

References

Citations

Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.

Add Your Opinion On This Article

'Why Do Cancer Rates Increase As We Age?'

Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.

regional medical center

Jumat, 06 Juli 2012

Why Do Cancer Rates Increase As We Age?

Add Your Opinion On This Article

Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar