Cancer Theory

This blog will elucidate the mechanism of cancer and show why only a full understanding of genomic reactions can result in complete and definitive cures. I developed this theory about 20 years ago. I now publish it because in that time I haven’t seen anything quite the same and I hope that it might encourage someone to test the idea experimentally.  Twenty years ago I heard of a woman biologist who placed cancer cells in an embryo and found that the cancer cells went back to normal. This theory is an attempt to explain that finding. I call it the Cell Recognition Theory. All comments and questions would be welcome.  One billion years ago there was a unicellular organism that underwent a mitotic division but rather than separate completely, the two cells decided to stick together and call themselves multi-cellular. This held some advantage. Perhaps it did nothing more than create a heavier organism that remained sessile thereby saving energy by allowing food to come to it. To e...

Researchers engineer a switch to tame aggressive cancers Quoting from the ScienceDaily article: "Certain proteins, such as E-cadherin, are important for the maintenance of normal tissue structure. When tumors become more aggressive, they often lose E-cadherin, resulting in dramatic changes to their structure, function and ability to spread. But when cancer cells are forced to express E-cadherin, research suggests they behave less aggressively and revert back to normal." And, "'Although genomics technology has revealed many new proteins that could force cancers to 'switch' back to their less aggressive state, these new targets have not yet been validated in preclinical models like mice because it is difficult to determine the molecular effects on each individual cancer cell, Dr. Lewis says.'" Cadherin and catenin mechanisms have been at the top of my list of possible candidates for the Cell Recognition Factor whose malfunction or disassociation and do...

How would you go about reprogramming cancer cells back to normalcy? You would first identify the most likely candidate(s) for Cell Recognition Factor(s) and determine how they change during the development of, let's say, a pancreatic cell. From the time of the first egg mass to mature adult cell, what CRF's were being expressed? Take these and chemically attach them to a carrier that is able to diffuse through tissue. Inject the complex into the blood or lymphatic system. Repeat the cocktail until normalcy is achieved. Once we know the exact sequence that particular CRF's are expressed, we can just inject stage-specific CRF's in a particular sequence. A difficulty that I'm hoping does not present itself is that of individual variations in CRF's. We may not want to have to design a sequence on an individual basis. It would be much better, at least initially, if one sequence for differentiation of pancreas cells was the same for all individuals. Essential elements...

I'd like to address an issue which is not that well-resolved in my mind. That is, do cancer cells arise from any cell of the body or only from stem cells? I believe that differentiated cells are subject to the Hayflick limit and, as such, will self-destruct (apoptosis) if they are unable to establish contact with the pre-assigned cell neighbors. But stem cells have built-in immortality. (I wish I had a subscription or access to journals so that I can cite the literature for every point I make. Unfortunately, I have to rely on the media to bring me news of new developments) That immortality may be checked by what are called Natural Killer Cells but if a stem cell should lose contact and start to reprogram it's phenotypic expression before NKC's have had a chance to stop them, they will begin to express one CRF after another and thereby avoid detection just like a parasite would do. Perhaps a little graphics is in order. You are a cell. You reach out with molecules similar to...

Every good theory needs to make accurate predictions. As such, I predict the following. 1. If you take the full gamut of embryologic TSA's (tissue specific antigens) and, either alone or attached to some mobile substrate, put them in contact with cancer cells, you will cause the reprogramming of the cancer cell's genomic expressions. 2. There is a particular sequence of TSA's that will take any given cancer cell to normalcy. 3. The particular sequence could be individual specific for, if you had them species-wide, it would be easy for a parasite to mimic them and avoid detection by immune cells. Instead, parasites normally continuously express a wide range of antigens throughout their life. 4. Cancer could be induced by denaturing the TSA's continuously. 5. The rate of cancer is directly proportional to the rate of cell division because this allows for a greater probability for the TSA's to become denatured. 6. Putting cancer cells into an embryo will result in the ...

I heard some real exciting news about a researcher that had managed to get adult stem cells to go embryonic. It was touted as a great way to get stem cells without having to sacrifice embryos. Yes, but I like it because we may be able to get cancer to revert to normal by taking a patient's stem cells, making them go embryonic, and places those cells in contact with the patient's cancer cells. If you've been following my blog, you know that cancer cells may just be looking for the right neighbors that will reset their genome to normalcy. The right "neighbors" are those that, like cancer cells themselves, express embryonic CRF (cell recognition factors).

The diffraction limit has been overcome by engineers at harvard. Now for the first time we will be able to view a cell surface in all its glory. Previously, we were able to view the cell surface with the electron microscope but the preparation techniques denatured the proteins. Now, however, we will soon be able to use an optical microscope to view objects in the 100 nanometer range and below. Education is a two-edged sword. I remember hearing about the diffraction limit and coming to the conclusion that we would never be able to view the cell surface in an unaltered state. Indeed, you must always take everything you learn with a grain of salt. What does this mean with regard to progress in Cell Recognition Factors? For one thing, we will be able to demonstrate the importance of cell recognition in development. And speaking of development, we may, in our lifetime, be able to manufacture a cell sorting machine that can recognize adult stem cells and pluck them out for further study. Wh...

http://www.technologyreview.com/Biotech/19039/ Technology is quickly gathering tools to help in characterizing the cell surface antigens or the RF's (recognition factors) that play a central role in cancer. We will create molecules that will "label" a cancer cell as producing certain CSA/RF's. Once we know where the cancer cell is in terms of it's present programming (remember, the existing CSA/RF is indicative of the particular cancer "stage"), we can present the cell with embryonic RF's that may alter the cell's behavior.