A NASTY KIND OF CANCER

                    In Nogales, a very long time ago

Now here is something REALLY depressing.  The peritoneum is a layer of epithelial cells (think skin) that lines most of your innards.  It acts as a conduit for all sorts of essential things, such as blood vessels, but it also lets cancer cells explore around and find some lethal place to roost.  Cancer can originate in the peritoneum, but more often (I think) originates elsewhere (think fallopian tubes), then uses the peritoneum to metastasize.  The biology here is well beyond my pay grade.  Take a crack at it yourself.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/peritoneal-carcinomatosis-ovarian-cancer

 

 

CRISPR AT TEN

 In the Cairo souk

The NY Times has provided us with a brief discussion of the discovery, usage, and functionality of the almost-famous biological tool, CRISPR.  If you have been diligent in following this blog, nothing here will surprise you.  Read it anyway; it will refresh your memory.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#search/crispr/FMfcgzGpGdmqLbBnhzvwNwvNDxCFWxGc 

As you know, CRISPR is a powerful “gene editing” devise, discovered and made available to medical science by Drs Jennifer Doudna and Emanuel Charpentier about ten years ago.  The discovery was so important that the pair won the Nobel Prize almost immediately – rather than having to wait 20 or so years, as is commonly the case.

CRISPR stands for CLUSTERED REGULARLY INTERSPACED SHORT PALENDROMIC REPEATS, in case you had forgotten.  We (humankind) learned of it through studies of bacteria, which ubiquitous tribe had evolved it as a protection against viruses.  CRISPR allows one to fabricate a molecule that can search out an undesirable stretch of DNA, and cut it out – and maybe even replace it with something better.  This sounds like an immeasurably potent weapon against disease – even OVCA.  However, I am a little disappointed at progress to date – but, heck, these things take time, I guess.

As you surely can imagine, CRISPR has spawned a bunch of corporate activity.   One such company, Intellia Theraputics has been cleaning up big-time.  Alas, another, with Dr. Doudna in personal attention, has so far been a dog.

Finally, CRISPR is such a big deal that it elicited a full scale biography of Doudna by a prominent biographer, Walter Issacson.  Unfortunately, it isn’t very good.  Dr. Doudna herself wrote a book about the discovery of CRISPR.  It isn’t very good, either.

Vitamin D and ovarian cancer.

 One Kalamazoo Autumn  

Here is a link to the article I mentioned last time, considering the effect of vitamin D on OVCA.  Not much here, I’m afraid, but some of you may want to follow up on it.  If you do, let me know.

https://www.insider.com/vitamin-d-may-reduce-ovarian-cancer-spread-other-organs-study-2022-6 

OSTEOPOROSIS AND OVCA

Linda the Kelly kids, Orcas Island

 

This is interesting.  A massive retrospective study of Australian women seems to show that using bone loss medicines containing bisphosphonates also helps prevent ovarian cancer – statistically,  Unfortunately, the news article I found gives no numerical verification of this hypothesis, nor any discussion of why it might be true.  Of course,  this is merely a correlation, not a proven case of cause-and-effect. It may not mean much – although obviously ever little bit of data helps.  For instance, the following is possible, although very unlikely:  (1) women who fear osteoporosis tend to drink more milk; (2) something in milk helps prevent OVCA.

I wish I could give you a link to this little article, but I can’t.  The work comes out of Queensland University and was published yesterday.  Maybe you can find it.

In passing, another recent news article purports to show that vitamin D helps retard the spread of cancer.  That being the case, I am about to go out on my balcony and “bag some rays”, as my student Dr. Steve Sheriff was wont  to say.

HOW TO EXPAND YOUR BRAIN POWER

She did love babies! 

I get stuff from an outfit called “Onclive”.  Onclive covers all varieties of cancer; OVCA is a minor aspect.  However, what they do cover is quality reporting; unfortunately not always couched in the language of us ordinary mortals.  Thus, Onclive is a good way to expand your brain power,  Google “Onclive learning modules” and give it a try.  Be sure to have a good search engine handy.  I am still working on it.

CAN TRANS WOMEN GET OVCA?

 Linda and her grant-nephew Simon

That little boy is about to start college!

I’m not sure that this is worth blogging about, but with an eye to getting another nice picture out there, here goes.

It appears that there is a minor and somewhat silly kerfuffle going on in Jolly Old over just what sort of human creature should worry about ovarian cancer.  It seems that the NHS has quietly dropped the word “woman” from that discussion, ostensibly in deference to the sensibilities of women of the “trans” variety.  The Health Minister, whom one might have thought was head of the NHS, seems to think that this is somewhat stupid, and points out that only women with ovaries – “biological women” – can get OVCA.  I would have thought that was obvious, but apparently it isn’t!

I can’t give you anything to read on this subject, because all the Brit news rags want you to pay up in advance.  Don’t worry, though.  They will muddle through.

 

WOW!

 Linda and Carolyn on Dungeness Spit

This is such good news that I can hardly believe it!  Scientists at Memorial Slone Kettering Cancer Center (possibly the best of them all) have run a small clinical study to test the efficacy of a new drug called dostarlimab against rectal cancer.  Dostarlimab belongs to a class of drug known as checkpoint inhibitors – Google it, if confused.  The drug currently is manufactured by Big Pharma member GlaxoSmithKline, which financed the trial.  Eighteen people were involved – a tiny number – BUT every one of them achieved full remission.  Cancer gone, completely!  And furthermore, no serious side effects were noted.  This kind of result has no verifiable precedent!  Of course, more testing is required, but ….Jeez!

Read this article.  You will be glad you did.

The link I gave you (above) doesn’t appear to work.  This one does.

https://abc7ny.com/memorial-sloan-kettering-cancer-center-rectal-immunotherapy-msk/11935554/  

Linda’s sister Carolyn Joyce alerted me to this important bit of news.

MORE GOOD STUFF

Linda at Mt. St. Helens

Here is more good research from Fred Hutch.  Several research scientists at that worthy institution have discovered at least part of the reason why immunotherapy techniques that work well to combat blood cancers are less effective against solid tumors.  It appears that such tumors somehow recruit an army of what are known as T-regs – meaning a type of T cell that down-regulates the ordinary sort of T cell which, if left alone, might eat your liver, kidneys, etc.  So, somehow, some solid tumors (including OVCA) have “learned how” to protect themselves with an armor-plating of T-regs.  How something like this could have evolved naturally remains a mystery to me.  I continue to suspect the existence of a Devil!

In passing I note that the PI on this study, although a Ph.D, looks like he belongs in Middle School!  Whole lot of smart young people coming along.  That gives me hope.

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