Groundbreaking research worldwide on breast cancer treatment is developed by scientists at the University of Colima, after having encouraging results in jaw tumors treatment. Jose de Jesus Lara Chavez, who heads the group of specialists, explained that after having conducted studies for treating benign jaw tumors through manipulating stem cells with very satisfactory results, they are working in breast cancer treatment.
He said that during four years, they analyzed pluripotent stem cells, which are able to regenerate all type of tissues, and found that using a biological stimulus could differentiate them from tumor cells to repair damage.
It is hypothesized that the origin of tumors are stem cells that lose their ability to control their proliferation. For this reason, they grow uncontrollably producing tumors, said Lara Chavez.
The scientist explained that they found a compound made with harmless substances, used in medical clinic on a daily basis, to differentiate the cells.
He presented a case of a of 22 years old patient with a jaw tumor, which produces bone loss. The scientists realized that the machinery of patient’ tumor are tumor stem cells. They applied the compound in the tumor to obtain culture results. After six days of treatment, new bone was formed. Holes were filled with new bone, and his jaw was completely regenerated in three months.
Conventional treatment, he said, is inserting a metal prosthesis with a bone graft from the patient’s hip to reconstruct the jaw, the cost ranges between 40,000 and 70,000 pesos (something around 2,600 and 4,550 USD).
“You are going to be surprised! The surgical treatment goes between 40 and 70 thousand pesos. If I estimate the cost of what I apply; it wouldn’t be more than 40 pesos (around 2.6 USD),” he said.
Lara Chavez said the next step is breast cancer. It is an incurable disease, and for this reason the traditional treatment is to kill the cells and remove them. They observed that stem cells are the origin of these tumors, which are the ones promoting tumor maintenance and invasive capacity. So, he thinks that the approach used for jaw tumors may also show encouraging results in breast cancer.
Treatment of mandibular tumors – which patent is pending in Mexico and the United States – was effective in 40 patients.
The team plans to open a clinic in Colima this year specialized in these tumors’ treatment, and continue researching an effective treatment for breast cancer.
Source: La Jornada
