“The tumor highway: technique to block glioblastoma progression”
Glioblastoma is a highly aggressive brain tumor that is difficult to stop. Researchers from Cambridge have proposed a new approach to slow down its invasion by altering the flexibility of hyaluronic acid, a molecule that supports brain tissue. This experimental technique aims to modify the environment to reduce the tumor cells’ invasive capacity.
The study reveals that when hyaluronic acid loses elasticity, tumor cells enter a “pause mode” and become dormant, unable to invade new territories. This finding could change the rules of fighting glioblastoma by focusing on modifying the environment rather than eliminating every tumor cell.
The next step for this research is to test the technique in animals and potentially move on to clinical trials in humans. Professor Melinda Duer believes that this method could be applied to other cancers where the extracellular matrix facilitates invasion, offering new hope for less invasive and more strategic therapies against glioblastoma.
