Findings from a team of researchers led by Yale Surgery Faculty Dr. Jason Sheltzer reveal why some cancer treatments fail: By picking and choosing which chromosomes to add or subtract as they divide, cancer cells effectively “out smart” anti-tumor drugs, by disguising themselves as “too weak” to cause harm. The research is the cover story of the Sept. 13 edition of Developmental Cell.
“Chromosomes are normally copied and distributed equally between two dividing cells … losing a chromosome can be fatal or crippling,” said Dr. Sheltzer.
“Our research shows that cancer cells can actually pick and choose which genetic materials they need to survive, so although they appear ‘unfit’ when they pick up or drop off a chromosome, they actually have everything they need to form a drug-resistant tumor.”
Dr. Sheltzer and his team were able to show the same patterns of aneuploidy in all different types of cancers, including melanoma and colon cancer. The findings explain why some cancer therapies fail, and how we might intervene.
“If we can identify drug-resistance genes, we can be confident that if we target them alongside the primary therapy, we might be able to avoid resistance altogether,” said Devon A. Lukow, first authr on the study and a researcher in Dr. Sheltzer’s lab.
Dr. Sheltzer joined the Departments of Surgery and Genetics Faculty in August. His Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory team will transition their lab to Yale this fall.