Long Distance Damage

Smoke from a wildfire can cause harm miles away from the fire itself. And the effects of a tumour can be felt far away in other parts of the body. These long-distance impacts can be as lethal as the cancer itself, so researchers are investigating how they occur. A study found that small proteins called cytokines released by tumours in fruit flies can break down the semi-permeable barrier that usually separates brain and bloodstream. As a result material from the blood (such as the green dye in the brain slice pictured) can seep into the brain, raising infection risk and reducing lifespan. Further tests revealed the same process and outcomes in mice, and found that preventing the barrier breach improved health. Limiting the long distance attacks of cancer could provide a complementary or alternative approach to toxic treatments that tackle the tumour itself, and help keep cancer confined.

Written by Anthony Lewis

Anthony Lewis

Writer

Ant was the web editor in the early days of BPoD, and has since worked with the UK’s top science organisations as a writer and multimedia producer. He now splits his time between freelance work and managing multimedia at The Lancet.

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• Image from work by Jung Kim and colleagues
• Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
• Image copyright held by the original authors
• Research published in Developmental Cell, September 2021