Researchers develop new model to investigate cancer’s earliest stages

Immune system can either activate or suppress tumor growth to help the body fight disease, or it becomes dysfunctional, helping the tumor grow, during early stage of cancer formation.

A team led by Joshua Leonard has also used the model as a virtual test bed to evaluate potential strategies for engineering cell-based therapies to overcome tumor-associated immune dysfunction.

The researchers have found that greater disorganization within tumors can promote immunosuppression and tumor growth.

Commenting on the research, Leonard said: "We know there was correlation between disorganization and poor prognosis, but the reason behind this connection wasn’t clear.

"This study helps explain how heterogeneity might give rise to an environment that tips the immune system toward a tumor-promoting state."

Leonard said that researchers could introduce biological therapies to shift the system away from becoming immunosuppressive, and their investigation suggestions some relatively straightforward strategies that could be effective.

"Our ability to engineer customized biological therapies using technologies like synthetic biology is rapidly expanding.

"Computational tools like this one will play a key role in helping us design and build therapies that are both safe and effective," added Leonard.

Image: Pictorial representation to investigate cancer’s earliest stages. Photo: courtesy of : Danny Wells / McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, Northwestern University.