"That such a fantastic possibility is moving out of the realms of the fantastical is because of the progress that has been made understanding the body's immune system and the work it does zapping (medical term) so many cells, probably on a daily basis, when they first start sending out signals that all is not well within their own bodies, and preventing them from multiplying."
"The new understanding of how our bodies catch and clear so many potential disasters, however, means that there is now a known interval, a pre-cancerous stage which it is thought could last up to 10 years, in which we could intervene if we knew how. Enter, to all possible fanfare though everything about her suggests she would eschew it Prof Sarah Blagden."
Work is underway to create vaccines that target cancers, starting with lung cancer, which currently registers about 50,000 new cases yearly in the UK and remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths. Understanding of the immune system has revealed how it eliminates many abnormal cells daily by detecting early warning signals and preventing their multiplication. Survival rates have doubled over 50 years, while diagnoses continue to rise. A pre-cancerous interval that may last up to ten years has been identified as a potential window for intervention. Professor Sarah Blagden is preparing clinical trials to intervene during that window but needs funding. Patients under her care include Trevor, a 68-year-old with melanoma and liver secondaries.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]